36.2207, -81.7779 · Watauga County ·
NID NC04653. Tap the map to open this water in the
live app.
What the runs do here
Baird Creek carries no anadromous run on our corridor map, so
this page makes no claim about salmon or steelhead at this dam. What it sits on is coldwater —
resident trout water — and the section below says which classification says so.
The structure
Owner
Valle Cay Property Owners Assc., Inc. Private
Purpose
Recreation
Type
Earth
Height
38 ft
Length
104 ft
Spillway
None
Storage
11 acre-ft · 1 acre pool
Condition
Fair · High hazard potential
From the National Inventory of Dams (USACE). Hazard potential is a
downstream-consequence classification, not a statement about the structure's condition.
The water above and below
Watauga River
0.41 mi from the dam · Delayed Harvest Trout Waters · stocked holdover (NCWRC)
Dutch Creek
0.53 mi from the dam · Hatchery Supported Trout Waters · stocked holdover (NCWRC)
Lost Branch
0.97 mi from the dam · Delayed Harvest Trout Waters · stocked holdover (NCWRC)
Coldwater designation is the state's own classification. A dam sits on one river and this list
is every designated reach within a mile and a half of it, so a tributary mouth shows up here too.
Water right now
No USGS temperature gauge we read reports within 20 miles of this dam, so
this page has no live number for it. That is a gap in the gauge network, not a judgement about
the water.
Public access sites near the dam, straight-line distance. A dam itself is private property
unless its owner says otherwise; these are the places the state lists as open.
Fly shops nearby
Fly Shop
4.6 mi
Appalachian Outfitters
6.2 mi · Boone · +1-828-372-7003
Waypoint Outfitters
6.7 mi · Boone · +1-828-865-1100
The Speckled Trout Outfitters
8.1 mi · Blowing Rock
Footsloggers Outdoor & Travel Outfitters
8.1 mi · +1 828-295-4453