Creek Disappeared.....???? How to find it????

[Boeing]

Guys, my high elev land has a small creek coming down from higher land (someone else's) and flows fairly strong for about 60 yards onto my property....then it slows to a slow pooling and then........disappears. The creek bed continues a half mile down completely thru my property and no water ever reappears. Where it dries up the creek bed is deep, 2-3 deep and 5-8 feet wide, lots of river washed stone and granite and quartz and all that other mountain rock stuff. I'm told that the creek "goes underground"
The photos show the creek where it comes onto my property (left pix), the photo with my tractor is where it is about 50 yards onto my property and the middle photo it is slowing and disappears.
So, HOW can I get this water to NOT go underground? Two reasons, this is the ONLY water anywhere for game and when it disappears so does the game. Secondly, a flowing creek would add to my happiness and property value. I'm no geologist, or land engineer but I'll bet that some of you have encountered this. Can I hire a back hoe to start digging where the creek disappears? Or...temporarily block the creek while pouring a bed of concrete so it cannot go underground? How about a 1/4 stick of dynamite? Then I'd get arrested for terrorism..... Any ideas? My deer are thirsty.

 

[MF283]

Never can tell with dynamite, could render your property useless.

 

[Creamer]

Playing with water flow can be dangerous (legally) but I certainly see why you are interested in keeping it above ground. I have never played with anything like that.

Nice property!

 

[IndyIan]

Do you think your hidden stream is someone else's spring downhill somewhere? If not, you could start playing with bentonite clay. You might have only one area that's really permeable, and the water could stay on top for a while longer if that's plugged.
We had one section of our pond that would let water out in the summer when the surrounding water table dropped and some bentonite clay seems to have sealed up the area permanently.

 

[Boeing]

Any idea who I could call to get some professional advice?

 

[lescarpentier]

I think that the ground below that point may be too porous for water to flow on top of it without some kind of a liner.
It does look pretty rocky.

 

[RNeumann]

Playing with water flow can be dangerous (legally) but I certainly see why you are interested in keeping it above ground.

I think this is the professional advice! The can o worms is opening!

 

[dragoneggs]

Be careful altering natural water paths. Maybe you can divert some of it but water easily finds its way to the lowest point and it takes a lot to drive it elsewhere.

 

[prichard]

Contact the local water management authority. They should be able to tell you a lot about what's going on and what you can and can't do.

 

[Todd727]

You are in Virginia right? There are man underground caves and caverns, which leads me to believe you aren't going to tame nature very easily. If you can keep it above ground there, it'll most likely find another path further down stream.