Basically our new house is in a valley in between 2 mountains that join at a higher peak. The center where the stream is located is downhill from the peak so when it rains all the water drains down the center where the stream is locate. The former owners put a lot of money into putting in drainage pipes under the ground in places to direct the flow of water coming off the mountains into a ditch on a public road.
Today the stream seemed more like ground water aka not more than a trickle. When it rains it's like full blown tiny river. It's not a good source for electricity. That being said we do have 2 mountains with good sun exposure and we're thinking solar panels would work well for us.