Cascade Canal  is part of the Deer Creek System.

The original ditch was dug in 1857 by William Harrison Folsom and first used in 1860 with a 53-cubic-feet per second water flow. NID purchased the canal from PG&E on Jan. 1, 1927.

The ditch diverted water from Deer Creek about one-fourth mile downstream from the Deer Creek Powerhouse through 19 miles of earth ditch, wood flume and pipeline.  

 In the 1970s, NID upgraded the Cascade Canal, installing steel framework to hold the side forms used to place concrete walls. The frame was 60 feet long, and was on wheels so crews could advance it after pour and stripling work.

In 1982 crews began a major two-mile upgrade of the Cascade Canal downstream of Red Dog Road where six old wooden flumes were replaced with 60-inch steel pipe.

 In 2001, planning begins for Lower Cascade Canal replacement. Together the upper and lower Cascade jobs would represent the District’s largest construction effort in more than 30 years. The 1,100-page EIR would be completed in 2006. The canal would be completed six years later, in 2012, for a total $41 million. The work includes 6.4 miles of large diameter pipeline, 5.5 miles of treated water lines and numerous fire hydrants