Data were collected from July 1975 through October 1976 to establish benchmark water-quality conditions in the Taylor Creek drainage basin in California. The Taylor Creek drainage basin is a high-altitude system of lakes and streams which forms one of the tributaries to Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada of California and Nevada. Sampling sites were distributed between the upper and lower reaches of the basin. Streamflow and water-quality data were collected at 13 stream sites. Water-quality data and depth profiles were collected at six lake sites. The reconnaissance included measurement and evaluation of the following selected characteristics: major chemicals, nutrients, fecal coliform bacteria, phytoplankton, periphytic algae, benthic macroinvertebrates, primary productivity, and stream community diversity. (USGS)