Pogues Run Wetlands EarthCache
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Pogue’s Run Park
Pogue’s Run Park, Trail and Creek are named for pioneer settler George Pogue, who put down roots near the creek called Pogue’s Run. With John Wesley McCormick, Pogue helped establish the area that in 1820 was enacted by Indiana ’s General Assembly to be the new state capital site, Indianapolis.
Pogue’s Run Park was designed by Christopher B. Burke Engineering Ltd. on behalf of the City of Indianapolis as a flood control basin to minimize the extent of flooding within the adjacent floodplain and to reduce downstream flooding within the City of Indianapolis.
Pogues Run would often flood as the increasingly large flow, exacerbated by urbanization, would back up at culverts as it flowed downstream and under Indianapolis. Pogues Run eventually flow through and under downtown Indianapolis and into White River.
It also serves to improve water quality through a series of sediment filtering engineered wetlands and associated open water habitat. The 14 acres of wetlands and 8 acres of open water systems are designed to create varied wetland plant community types and promote sheet flow of water as it passes through the site.
The engineered wetlands were delineated with zones of wetland species, while the high areas contain grasses, native wildflowers, and sparse non-natives. Water entering the site from Pogue’s Run is slowed and dispersed through a series of trenches with long weirs. Weirs distribute water into the wet prairie community, followed by the deeper emergent zone. The water then flows into the open water zone, ending at another trench and weir before exiting the basin and entering back into Pogue’s Run.
The Pogue’s Run Park engineered wetlands and upland ecosystems additionally provide much-needed wildlife habitat as well as active and passive recreation opportunities for the community. The flood basin includes a 1.5-mile loop trail, a paved parking lot, wetland and prairie vegetation, and many open, grassy areas providing ample opportunity for educational programs.
The wetlands flow from East to West. The initial entry point is dilineated by a large spillway with manmade wiers to slow water and aerate the flow. The flow cascades into an initial settlement pool.
The next flow is into a wider and slower pool, divided from the final westernmost and largest pool by a wier. During high water this division disappears. During low water it is a walking path.
When high water hits the wetlands, the pools fill and the potential floodwaters are stored until they evaporate, are soaked up by the wetlands and are slowly released into the Pogues Run channel downstream.
To log this Earthcache:
1) Go to posted coordinates, from here you can survey the entire wetlands
2) Describe the initial spillway and the shape of the obstructions
3) Describe the pool levels and vegetation of each of the three pools
4) OPTIONAL: Post a picture
The park is open Dawn to Dusk.
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