Lake Abert
Lake Abert | ||
---|---|---|
Primary inflows Chewaucan River | | |
Catchment area | 820 sq mi (2,100 km2) | |
Basin countries | United States | |
Max. length | 15 mi (24 km) | |
Max. width | 7 mi (11 km) | |
Surface area | 57 sq mi (150 km2) | |
Max. depth | 11 ft (3.4 m) | |
Surface elevation | 4,259 ft (1,298 m) |
Lake Abert (also known as Abert Lake) is a large, shallow,
Ancient Lake Chewaucan
The arid land around Lake Abert was once lush. During the
Lake Chewaucan covered the Abert and Summer Lake basins for most of the late Pleistocene epoch. The last high water period occurred about 13,000 years ago. There is no archaeological evidence of human utilization of Lake Chewaucan during this time. The earliest evidence for possible human occupation of the basin comes from the Paisley Caves, which were originally excavated by Luther Cressman in the late 1930s. Cressman found inconclusive evidence that humans could have begun an occupation of the area around 11,000 years ago.[5] Further excavations of the site by Dennis Jenkins since 2002 have yielded evidence of occupation of the area as far back as 14,300 years ago.[6]
Lake Chewaucan began to dry up at the close of the Pleistocene epoch. As it shrank, salts and alkali were concentrated in its remaining waters, and the result was the formation of Lake Abert and Summer Lake. Today, the two lakes are 20 mi (32 km) apart and are the only remnants of Lake Chewaucan.[7][8]
Lake environment
Lake Abert is an
The east side of Lake Abert is bounded by Abert Rim, a steep escarpment that rises over 2,500 ft (760 m) above the lake surface. The lake is bordered on the west by a long ridge called Coglan Buttes and on the north by the Coleman Hills. The lake's only year-around source of fresh water comes from the Chewaucan River, which flows into the lake from the south.[1][8]
The Lake Abert drainage area covers 820 sq mi (2,100 km2). The environment in the Abert drainage basin is semi-arid. Most of the precipitation in the area occurs as snowfall during the winter months, and the Chewaucan River system is fed primarily by seasonal snowmelt. The lake's only other source of fresh water is summer thundershowers that produce a small amount of runoff from Abert Rim. Because the lake has no outlet, it has developed a high concentration of
Ecology
Fish cannot survive in the lake because of the high salinity and alkali content; consequently,
History
Lake Abert was home to a series of prehistoric cultures that left behind an array of archaeological sites along the east shore of the lake. Stone house rings that are numerous in the area are not found elsewhere on the Great Basin.[citation needed]
The first written record of the lake was made by John Work, the leader of a Hudson's Bay Company fur trapping expedition. Work recorded his party's visit in his journal on 16 October 1832. In his journal, Work called it Salt Lake. Work's journal also implies that other trappers may have been to the lake before his expedition.[16][17]
Lieutenant John C. Fremont named Lake Abert during his 1843 mapping expedition through central and southern Oregon. Fremont and his Army
[W]e turned a point of the hill on our left, and came suddenly in sight of another and much larger lake, which, along its eastern shore, was closely bordered by the high black ridge which walled it in by a precipitous face ... Spread out over a length of 20 miles, the lake, when we first came in view, presented a handsome sheet of water; and I gave to it the name Lake Abert, in honor of the chief of the corps to which I belong....[19]
In 1986, there was a large
Human activity
Today, the
Because of the lake's extreme alkalinity, there are no recreational activities that occur on the lake, although kayakers occasionally paddle on the lake. Swimming or extended contact with the lake's water would be harmful to humans. There are no developed campgrounds at Lake Abert, but the Bureau of Land Management does allow dispersed camping in the area. The only common recreational activity at Lake Abert is
A small brine shrimp collection enterprise on Lake Abert was begun in 1979. The brine shrimp's high tolerance for salinity and ability to withstand freezing temperatures during the winter make brine shrimp the lake's only residents. While the brine shrimp harvest from the lake is relatively small, the impact of harvest has never been studied.[10][11][12][20]
Location
Lake Abert is located in Lake County in south-central Oregon. The lake is 30 mi (48 km) north of Lakeview, Oregon, on U.S. Route 395. The highway runs along the east shore of the lake for approximately 18 mi (29 km). There are several interpretive signs at highway turn-offs overlooking the lake. Lake Abert is approximately 130 mi (210 km) southwest of Burns, Oregon, also on Highway 395.[3][8][13]
See also
- List of lakes in Oregon
References
- ^ a b c d Deike, Ruth G. and Blair F. Jones, "Provenance, Distribution and Alteration of Volcanic Sediments in a Saline Alkaline Lake", Developments of Sedimentology, vol. 28: Hypersaline Brines and Evaporitic Environments (A. Nissenbaum, editor), Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam, the Netherlands (distributed in the United States and Canada by Elsevier/North-Holland, Inc of New York), 1980.
- doi:10.1002/jqs.619. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2012-09-04. Retrieved 2022-01-19.
- ^ a b c d e Bowker, Kimberly, "Salt of the Earth - At Lake Abert, beauty never smelled so bad" Archived 2016-06-01 at the Wayback Machine, The Bulletin, Bend, Oregon, 31 December 2009.
- ^ "Ancient Lakes", Oregon Historical Marker, Summer Lake, Oregon.
- ^ Jerrems, Jerry, "An Archaeological View of Summer Lake Valley, Oregon" Archived 2008-07-04 at the Wayback Machine, Sundance Archeological Research Fund, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno Nevada, 27 April 2007.
- ^ Jenkins / Willerslev et al. "Clovis Age Western Stemmed Projectile Points and Human Coprolites at the Paisley Caves Archived 2016-02-01 at the Wayback Machine", Science, 13 July 2012.
- ^ "Pluvial Lakes: Oregon’s inland seas" Archived 2010-01-04 at the Wayback Machine, Oregon: A Geologic History, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Portland, Oregon, 9 February 2010.
- ^ a b c d Oregon topographic map Archived 2012-03-20 at the Wayback Machine, United States Geological Survey, United States Department of Interior, Reston, Virginia; displayed via ACME mapper, www.acme.com, 9 February 2010.
- ^ a b "Abert Lake" Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine, World Lakes Database, International Lake Environment Committee Foundation, Shiga, Japan, 1999.
- ^ a b c d Cain, Eric (producer), "Abert Lake" Archived 2013-07-23 at the Wayback Machine, Oregon Field Guide video (Episode 405), Oregon Public Broadcasting, Portland, Oregon, 1993.
- ^ a b Conte, Frank P. and Paul A. Conte, "Abundance and spatial distribution of Artemia salina in Lake Abert, Oregon", Hydrobiologia (Volume 158, Number 1), Springer Netherlands, New York, New York, January 1988, pp167-172.
- ^ a b "Lake Abert" Archived 2009-07-04 at the Wayback Machine, Audubon Society of Portland, Portland, Oregon, 10 February 2010.
- ^ a b "Lake Abert" Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine, Basin and Range Birding Trail, Bureau of Land Management in cooperation with the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge and the Lake County Chamber of Commerce, Alturas, California, 10 February 2010.
- ^ a b c "Rangeland Health Assessment West Lake #424" Archived 2009-01-16 at the Wayback Machine, Lakeview District, Bureau of Land Management, United States Department of Interior, Lakeview, Oregon, 12 August 1997.
- ^ "Abert Rim" Archived 2010-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, Sights to See in Oregon's Outback, OregonsOutback.com, Lakeview, Oregon, 10 February 2010.
- ^ a b McArthur, Lewis A. and Lewis L. McArthur, "Lake Abert", Oregon Geographic Names (Seventh Edition), Oregon Historical Society Press, Portland, Oregon, 2003, p. 552.
- ^ a b Brogan, Phil F., East of the Cascades (Third Edition), Binford & Mort, Portland, Oregon, 1965, p. 38.
- ^ Bach, Melva M., "John C. Fremont" Archived 2021-01-31 at the Wayback Machine, History of the Fremont National Forest, Fremont National Forest, United States Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Lakeview, Oregon, 1981, pp. 5-9.
- ^ Fremont, J. C. (Brevet Captain of the Topographical Engineers), Narrative of the exploring expedition to the Rocky mountains in the year 1842, and to Oregon and North California in the years 1843-44, D. Appleton & Company, New York, New York, 1849, pp. 125-126.
- ^ "About our Company" Archived 2010-05-03 at the Wayback Machine, Oregon Desert Brine Shrimp, www.oregondesertbrineshrimp.com, Valley Falls, Oregon, 10 February 2010.
External links
- Lake Abert Archived 2013-07-23 at the Wayback Machine program on Oregon Field Guide
- Lake Abert Dries Up Video produced by Oregon Field Guide
- Shrinking Lake Abert Nasa earth observatory
- Lake Abert is in Deep Trouble Oregon Live