Lake Chelan

Lake Chelan
Lake Chelan with Stehekin on the lower left
Lake Chelan is located in Washington (state)
Lake Chelan
Lake Chelan
LocationChelan County, Washington,
United States
Coordinates47°50′28″N 120°02′47″W / 47.84111°N 120.04639°W / 47.84111; -120.04639
TypeGlacially overdeepened lake
Primary inflowsStehekin River, Railroad Creek
Primary outflowsChelan River
Catchment area924 sq mi (2,390 km2)
Basin countriesUnited States
Max. length50.5 mi (81.3 km)
Surface area52.1 sq mi (135 km2)
Average depth474 ft (144 m)
Max. depth1,486 ft (453 m)
Water volume4.66 cu mi (19.4 km3)
Residence time10.6 years
Shore length1109.2 mi (175.7 km)
Surface elevation1,100 ft (340 m)
Settlementssee Cities
References[1][2]
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Lake Chelan (/ʃəˈlæn/ shə-LAN) is a narrow, 50.5 mi (81.3 km) long lake in Chelan County, north-central Washington state, U.S.[1] It is an overdeepened lake and resembles a fjord, with an average width of 1.3 mi (2.1 km). Near its upper end, the lake surface lies more than 6,600 ft (2,000 m) below peaks less than 3 mi (4.8 km) away.[3][4] Before 1927, Lake Chelan was the largest natural lake in the state in terms of both surface area and water volume.[2][5] Upon the completion of Lake Chelan Dam in 1927, the elevation of the lake was increased by 21 ft (6.4 m) to its present maximum-capacity elevation of 1,100 ft (340 m).[2]

With a maximum depth of 1,486 ft (453 m), Lake Chelan is the third deepest lake in the United States behind Crater Lake, the deepest, and Lake Tahoe, the second deepest. Because of overdeepening, the sides of this lake drop steeply to its bottom. The deepest part of Lake Chelan lies as much as 436 ft (133 m) below sea level. In places, the bedrock floor of the valley occupied by Lake Chelan, which is buried by Pleistocene glacial and lacustrine sediments, lies at least 1,529 ft (466 m) below sea level. Two communities lie on the southern end of the lake, and a third sits at the far north end, providing a gateway to the North Cascades National Park.[3][4]

  1. ^ a b "TMDL Case Study: Lake Chelan, Washington". Environmental Protection Agency. January 1994. Retrieved 2015-01-17.
  2. ^ a b c Kendra, Will; Singleton, Lynn (January 1987). "Morphometry of Lake Chelan" (PDF). Washington State Department of Ecology. Retrieved 2023-02-03.
  3. ^ a b Whetten, J.T. (1967). "Lake Chelan Washington: bottom and sub-bottom topography". Limnology and Oceanography. 12 (2): 253–259. doi:10.4319/lo.1967.12.2.0253.
  4. ^ a b Lillquis, Karl (2016). Moses Coulee to Chelan Field Trip, 12 June 2016. Ellensburg, Washington: Ellensburg Chapter, Ice Age Floods Institute. p. 39.
  5. ^ Bortleson, G.C.; Dion, N.P.; McConnell, J.B.; Nelson, L.M. (1976). "Reconnaissance data on lakes in Washington -- Vol. 5, Chelan, Ferry, Kittitas, Klickitat, Okanogan, and Yakima Counties". Washington State Department of Ecology. Retrieved 2023-02-03.