Boat Waves on Johnson Lake and Kenai River, Alaska
Abstract
The Kenai River is Alaska's most popular salmon sport fishery and is located on the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage. The State of Alaska and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) are concerned about bank erosion from the combined effects of the high summer flows and the high volume of boat traffic related to the salmon. The State of Alaska selected four boats typically found on the river which were 16-20 ft in length, carried up to six people, and were restricted to a maximum engine power of 35 hp for safety reasons. Boat wave measurements were conducted to determine wave characteristics as a fiction of hull type (flat or V-bottom), boat length, engine power, passenger loading, distance from the boat, and upstream versus downstream boats. Since some of the boats when fully loaded were just barely planing, the study sponsors wanted to know if increasing the allowable engine power from 35 hp to 50 hp would result in lesser wave height. Tests were conducted at both Johnson Lake and on the Kenai River. The measurements showed that significant reduction in wave height could be achieved by using flat-bottom boats, setting a minimum limit on the ratio of power to total boat weight, and limiting boat operation at nonpianing speeds that caused the largest waves.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA398623
Entities
People
- Stephen T. Maynord
Organizations
- Engineer Research and Development Center