Step 1: Open the project

You will open the Stowe_Hydrology ArcGIS Pro project, which contains the data that you will
need to perform the hydrological analysis.

a. Start ArcGIS Pro/ArcMap

b. If necessary, sign in using your ArcGIS Online organizational account.

c. Near Recent Projects, click Open Another Project .

Note:
If you have configured ArcGIS Pro to start without a project template or with a default project,
you will not see the Start page. On the Project tab, click Open, and then click Open Another
Project.
d. In the Open Project dialog box, browse to
the C:\EsriTraining\PerformHydroAnalysis\Stowe_Hydrology folder and double-click
Stowe_Hydrology.aprx to open the project.
e. On the View tab, in the Windows group, click Reset Panes and choose Reset Panes For
Mapping (Default).
View result

The project contains a map with a topographic basemap and the following data layers:

•
Pour_point: This point feature layer depicts the outlet downstream of the
Little River.
• Stowe_boundary: This polygon feature layer depicts the boundaries of
Stowe, Vermont.
• Stowe_surface_water: This raster layer depicts all surface water bodies in
the area of interest. The resolution is 30 meters, which means that each cell
in the layer has an area of 30 square meters.
• Stowe_DEM: This raster layer depicts elevation within the study area and
also has a resolution of 30 meters.
Now that you have seen the Stowe DEM, you will turn it off so that it does not hide your results.

f. In the Contents pane, uncheck the box for the Stowe_DEM layer to turn it off.

View result
Next, you will use geoprocessing tools to identify any sink locations in the DEM.

Step 2: Identify sinks

First, you will identify sinks in your DEM. Sinks are areas where the flow direction cannot
be calculated. In some cases, a sink represents an area where water collects (such as a pond or
lake). However, in hydrological analysis, sinks are more often due to data anomalies or errors
caused by factors such as raster resolution. Although your DEM was derived from reliable data,
sinks may still be present. To run an accurate hydrological analysis for the area around Stowe,
you first need to locate any sinks.
A. On the Analysis tab, in the Geoprocessing group, click Tools.

The Geoprocessing pane opens. Here, you can browse a multitude of toolboxes built in to

ArcGIS Pro. You will use several tools from the Hydrology toolset within the Spatial

Analyst toolbox .

B. In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Toolboxes tab.

C. Scroll to Spatial Analyst Tools and click the down arrow to view its contents.
D. Within Spatial Analyst Tools, click the Hydrology toolset to see the various
tools available for hydrological analysis.

View result
 E. Click the Flow Direction tool to open it.

The Flow Direction tool opens. You will determine the flow direction for the area, and
then you will use the output to identify sinks.
F. For Input Surface Raster, choose Stowe_DEM.
G. For Output Flow Direction Raster, type Stowe_flow_direction.

View result
 H. Leave the remaining parameters unchanged.

The remaining parameters are not relevant to your analysis and, therefore, do not need to be
set.

Hint:
To learn more about a tool parameter, point to the parameter name, and then point to the

Information button to view its pop-up.

I. Click Run.

View result

The tool runs and the flow direction raster layer is added to the map.

The symbology of the layer corresponds to the direction in which the water is likely to flow,
with darker colors indicating a more southerly flow direction and lighter colors indicating a
more northerly flow direction. The appearance of the layer is not important to your analysis
because you will run another tool to automatically find sinks based on the flow direction layer.
 J. In the Contents pane, uncheck the box for the Stowe_flow_direction layer to
turn it off.

Next, you will use the Sink tool to identify areas of internal drainage (sinks) within the
flow direction raster layer.

K. In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Back button to return to the

Hydrology toolset.
L. From the Hydrology toolset, click the Sink tool to open it.

The Sink tool only has two parameters. For the first parameter, you will input the result of the
analysis that you performed with the Flow Direction tool.

M. For Input D8 Flow Direction Raster, choose Stowe_flow_direction.

N. For Output Raster, type Stowe_sinks.

View result

O. Click Run.

The tool runs and the sink raster is added to the map.

The new layer, which contains mostly small groups of black pixels, might be difficult to see
with its default symbology. You will change the symbology to make the sinks easier to see.

P. In the Contents pane, right-click the Stowe_sinks layer and choose Symbology.

The Symbology pane opens.

Q. In the Symbology pane, for Color Scheme, click the down arrow and check the
box for Show Names.
R. Choose the Yellow To Red color scheme.
Note:
The color scheme names may differ from the preceding graphic.
S. Close the Symbology pane.

The sinks now contrast more with the basemap but are still small and difficult to see.

T. Zoom in to the pour point (the red circle) to view some of the sinks.
View result
 U. Pan around Stowe and explore the map, taking note of sink locations in relation
to the Stowe_surface_water raster layer.

You determined that sinks primarily appear around the stream networks and water bodies
identified by the Stowe_surface_water raster layer. Existing water tends to be flat and can cause
errors, such as sinks, in a DEM. Next, you will create a new DEM with these imperfections
removed.

Step 3: Fill sinks

Now that you have identified where sinks exist in your DEM, you will create a DEM with the
sinks removed. In your new DEM, all sinks will be changed to match the elevation value of the
lowest cell next to the sink. Each cell in the new DEM will be part of at least one continuous
decreasing path of cells leading to an edge of the dataset. This new DEM will allow more
accurate hydrological analysis of the Stowe region.

A. In the Contents pane, right-click the Stowe_DEM layer and choose Zoom To Layer.

The map returns to the extent of your study area.

B. Turn off the Stowe_sinks layer.

C. In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Back button to return to the Hydrology
toolset.
The last step in preconditioning the elevation model is to run the Fill tool to remove sinks
from the Stowe_DEM.
D. From the Hydrology toolset, open the Fill tool.
E. For Input Surface Raster, choose Stowe_DEM.
F. For Output Surface Raster, type Stowe_fill.

View result

The final parameter, Z limit, would allow you to set a maximum elevation difference at which
to fill sinks. If the difference in elevation between a sink and its edge were above the limit, the
sink would not be filled. In this exercise, you want to fill all the sinks in your data, so you will
leave this parameter unchanged.

G. Click Run.

The tool runs and the filled DEM is added to the map. The new DEM looks almost identical to
the original DEM, but the sinks in the dataset have been filled. You will use this new layer as
the basis for delineation of the Little River watershed in Stowe.

H. On the Quick Access Toolbar, click the Save Project button to save the project.
I. Leave ArcGIS Pro open for the next exercise.

You used a series of geoprocessing tools to identify sinks within a raw DEM. You also
inspected the sinks and found that most occurred on or near surface water bodies, likely because
of insufficient elevation data. Lastly, you filled the sinks in the original DEM.

In the next exercise, you will use your new DEM to delineate the watershed area that spans
Stowe. This watershed data will be provided to the Vermont state hydrographer for further
analysis to help Stowe officials prepare for future floods.

Exercise: Delineate the watershed

Previously, you removed sinks from your DEM to prepare it for hydrological analysis. In this
exercise, you will use the DEM to determine the watershed area for the pour point south of
Stowe. A watershed area is the area in which all flowing water flows toward a certain outlet—
in this case, your pour point. With the watershed area, the Vermont state hydrographer will be
able to limit subsequent analysis results to the relevant area for your outlet. To determine the
watershed, you will need two components: a flow direction raster layer and an accurate outlet
point.
Note:
This exercise builds on previous exercise results. If necessary, complete the Precondition the
elevation model exercise before continuing.
Estimated completion time in minutes: 50

To complete exercises, you need the following:

• ArcGIS Pro/ArcMap (Basic, Standard, or Advanced)

• ArcGIS Spatial Analyst

Step 1: Assess flow directions

The first step to delineate a watershed is to determine the direction in which water will flow in
your DEM. This information will allow you to determine the areas where water will flow to
the pour point, or outlet. You will create another flow direction raster layer, this time for the
DEM with filled sinks.

A. If necessary, open your Stowe_Hydrology project in ArcGIS Pro/ArcMap

Hint:
Start ArcGIS Pro/ArcMap, and then under Recent Projects, double-click Stowe_Hydrology.

B. In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Back button to return to the Hydrology
toolset.
C. Open the Flow Direction tool.

In the first exercise, you used the Flow Direction tool to create a raster output that you then
used to identify sinks with the Sink tool. You will again use the Flow Direction tool to create
a critical intermediary layer. However, this time, the output layer will be used in a later step as
input data for the Flow Accumulation tool.

D. For Input Surface Raster, choose Stowe_fill.

E. For Output Flow Direction Raster, type Stowe_fill_flow_direction.

View result

F. Leave the remaining parameters unchanged.

G. Click Run.
View result

The tool runs and the new layer is added to the map.

Note:
The colors used are randomly generated; your project may differ from the example graphics.
Unlike the previous flow direction layer, which was black and white, this layer is symbolized
with color.

H. In the Contents pane, review the symbology for the Stowe_fill_flow_direction layer.

View result
The cell values in a flow direction raster layer are normally one of only eight integers: 1, 2, 4,
8, 16, 32, 64, and 128. These eight integers correspond to the eight possible flow directions
(because any given cell is surrounded by eight cells). Your previous flow direction layer,
however, had some values that were not one of those eight integers. Those values belonged to
the sinks that you later removed from the data. Because the original flow direction layer had a
wide range of values, it was automatically symbolized based on a color ramp that used the
default black-to-white color scheme. Your new flow direction layer only has eight values, so it
was automatically symbolized with a unique color for each value.

Step 2: Snap outlet to stream

Now that you have the first component, a flow direction layer, you will determine the second
component for your watershed delineation: the location of the outlet point. One of the layers
that you downloaded with the project is the Pour_point layer, which represents an outlet
downstream of Stowe, Vermont. For an accurate watershed, the outlet point must be precisely
located on the stream as rendered in the DEM (which may differ slightly from the actual
location of the stream due to the DEM's resolution or other inaccuracies).

First, you will determine the exact location of the stream by calculating the areas where water
accumulates the most. Then, you will snap the location of the pour point to match the stream
exactly.

A. Return to the Hydrology toolset.

Hint:

In the Geoprocessing pane, click the Back button .

You will use the Flow Accumulation tool to create a raster layer that indicates where water
is most likely to accumulate. The flow accumulation for each cell is expressed as a numeric
value based on the number of cells that flow into that cell. Cells with high values of
accumulation often coincide with the locations of flowing water bodies. With your flow
accumulation raster, you will identify the Little River that flows through Stowe.
B. Open the Flow Accumulation tool.
C. For Input Flow Direction Raster, choose Stowe_fill_flow_direction.
D. For Output Accumulation Raster, type Stowe_flow_accumulation.
View result
 E. Leave the remaining parameters unchanged.

The Input Weight Raster parameter would apply a weight to each cell, which is useful when
you expect water to be distributed in a nonuniform way (for instance, in larger study areas
where precipitation levels may vary significantly). The Output Data Type parameter would
allow you to choose whether accumulation is measured with integers or floating points. Float,
the default value, allows the inclusion of decimal places, making it more accurate in most
situations. The Input Flow Direction Type parameter would determine the input flow direction.

F. Click Run.

View result
The tool runs and the flow accumulation raster layer is added to the map.

The cells with the highest flow accumulation are white. The faint line of white cells running
through the outlet point is the Little River.

Next, you will use the Measure Distance tool to determine the distance between the current
outlet point and the location of the Little River as represented in the flow accumulation raster.
You will then use this distance to snap the outlet point to the correct cell so that it aligns
precisely with the stream.

G. In the map view, zoom in to the outlet point.

View result

The outlet is close to the stream's location but does not match it exactly. You will measure the
exact distance in meters, which is the unit of measurement used by the map.

H. On the Map tab, in the Inquiry group, click the Measure down arrow and choose

Measure Distance .

The Measure Distance dialog box opens.

I. If necessary, in the Measure Distance dialog box, set the display units to Metric.
View result

J. On the map, click the outlet point.

K. Double-click the approximate center of the nearest cell with a high flow accumulation
value.
View result

The Measure Distance dialog box displays the length of the measurement, which is
approximately 50 meters (it is fine if your measurement varies slightly—you only need an
approximation). On the basis of this measurement, you will use a distance of 60 meters to snap
the outlet point to the stream. A snapping distance that is slightly higher than the measured
distance helps avoid ambiguity in the tool. When choosing a snapping distance, you do not
want to exceed the measured distance by too much because the point may snap to an area
further downstream.

L. On the Map tab, in the Navigate group, click the Explore button .

The measurement is removed from the map, and you can now navigate normally.

You will now run the Snap Pour Point tool . This tool automatically snaps a point feature
to the cell of highest flow accumulation within a specified distance—in this case, 60 meters.
M. In the Geoprocessing pane, return to the Hydrology toolset.
N. Open the Snap Pour Point tool.
O. For Input Raster Or Feature Pour Point Data, choose Pour_point.
P. For Input Accumulation Raster, choose Stowe_flow_accumulation.
Q. For Output Raster, type Stowe_snapped_pour_point.
 R. For Snap distance, type 60.

View result

S. Click Run.

View result

The tool runs and the snapped pour point raster layer is added to the map. The raster displays
a single cell that represents the outlet's new location. In the preceding graphic, the snapped
pour point is represented as a blue cell; this color is random and may differ from your result.

T. In the Contents pane, right-click the Stowe_flow_accumulation layer and choose Zoom
To Layer.

Step 3: Delineate watershed upstream of outlet

Now that you have both a flow direction layer and an accurate outlet point layer, you can
determine the watershed area upstream of the outlet. You are now ready to delineate the

watershed using the Watershed tool .

A. In the Geoprocessing pane, return to the Hydrology toolset and open the Watershed
tool.
 B. Set the following parameters:

• Input D8 Flow Direction Raster: Stowe_fill_flow_direction

• Input Raster Or Feature Pour Point Data: Stowe_snapped_pour_point
• Output Raster: Stowe_watershed
View result

C. Click Run.

The tool runs and a new raster layer is added to the map. You will change the new layer's
symbology.

D. In the Contents pane, right-click the Stowe_watershed layer and choose Symbology.
E. In the Symbology pane, for Primary Symbology, change the symbology method to
Unique Values.
F. In the lower part of the Symbology pane, on the Values tab, click the color patch and
choose a color from the color palette.

View result
This watershed represents the area that flows to the specified outlet. The watershed comprises
almost the entirety of Stowe's town boundaries, indicating that rainfall that lands in Stowe will
more than likely rush through the town rather than drain away from it.

G. Close the Symbology pane and Geoprocessing pane.

H. Save the project, and then exit ArcGIS Pro/ArcMap

You determined how water will flow throughout Stowe, Vermont. You then snapped the pour
point to the location of the Little River in the DEM. Finally, based on the flow direction layer
and pour point, you determined the location of the watershed upstream of the town.

Using your watershed area analysis and the original Stowe_DEM raster layer as input, the
Vermont state hydrographer can now use other Hydrology tools to determine how fast water
in the watershed will flow to the outlet and can create a unit hydrograph for the pour point.
Stowe officials would use this information to inform their planning and decision-making for
future flood events.