| Lake Van Arsdale | |
| Basin Countries: | United States |
| Inflow: | Eel River, Mill Creek, Rocky Creek, Trout Creek |
| Outflow: | Eel River, Powerhouse Canal |
| Catchment: | 345sqmi[1] |
| Width: | 400feet |
| Area: | 163acres |
| Pushpin Map: | California#USA |
| Pushpin Map Alt: | Location of Lake Van Arsdale in California, USA. |
Lake Van Arsdale, also known as Van Arsdale Reservoir, is a reservoir on the Eel River in California, part of the Potter Valley Project. Located in Mendocino County, north of the town of Potter Valley, California, the reservoir supplies water to users as far south as Marin County.
The reservoir is formed by the Cape Horn Dam, also known as Van Arsdale Dam, which impounds the waters of the Eel River. A portion of its water (per year, on average) is diverted southward through an aqueduct tunnel to a powerhouse in Potter Valley, where it drives a turbine capable of generating up to 9.4 MW of electric power. Diverted water then descends by means of the Powerhouse Canal and East Fork Russian River to Lake Mendocino, which supplies the Sonoma County Water Agency. The non-diverted flow continues down the Eel to its mouth at the Pacific Ocean near Fortuna.[2]
In 1905, the Snow Mountain Water and Power Company started building the Potter Valley Project. Cape Horn Dam was completed in, and the original project became operational in 1908. Pacific Gas and Electric Company took over the project in 1930 and has owned the dam ever since.
Cape Horn Dam is an earth fill and concrete gravity dam high, long, and thick, containing of material. Its crest is above sea level.[3]