Gauge Description:

Flow Schedule for 2011 
High spring flows have lasted well into summer.   When flows do subside to typical summer flows, the schedule is expected to be as follows:
Weekends in July, August & 1st weekend in September.   1750 cfs between 7 AM & 1 PM.
Weekdays in July & August till Sept. 6:    1500 cfs between 8 AM and 12 Noon. 
September - Thursdays through Sundays:  1500 cfs between 9 AM and 12 Noon.
October - Mondays & Fridays:    1300 cfs between 9 AM and 12 Noon.
Weekends - October through February:   1500 cfs between 9 AM and 12 Noon.
Boatable flows can also occur on other days of the week and are not always predictable.

 
The flow gauge at Chili Bar is maintained by PG&E. Flow information is distributed and stored by CDEC. You can obtain daily flow information in numeric form at CDEC website, but the gauge home page is at Chili Bar Gauge info. If there is no graph visible above, click on this link to a CDEC graph. Convenient flow information for almost all rivers in California and many other western states can be found at Dreamflows.com. You can also call the River Store (530) 626-3435 or the El Dorado County Flow Phone at (530) 621-6616.

Chili Bar Reservoir can only release water that it receives from Slab Creek Reservoir, which is operated by SMUD.   At the bottom of the SMUD page is a link to a pop up page with an 8 day and hourly release prediction.   PG&E can shape and alter the timing of their release at Chili Bar, but the total volume of the release has to be the same as what comes from Slab Creek.   Use the information below to convert the acre feet readings into cfs.
1 cfs = 1.983 acre-feet per day which is close enough to 1 cfs = 2 acre feet per day. 1,000 cfs for 24 hours = 2,000 acre feet per day.
100 acre feet per hour = 1210 cfs for that hour.  50 acre feet per hour = 605 cfs for that hour.  120 acre feet per hour = 1450 cfs.
Bill Center reports that boatable flows are most likely to occur when daily release from Slab Creek is 1,000 acre feet or more and when hourly release is predicted be be higher than 100 acre feet.