Bear Lake State Park (sometimes called North Beach State Park) is a public recreation area bordering the north and eastern shores of
Bear Lake in the southeast corner of
Bear Lake County,
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
, near the
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
and
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...
state lines. The
state park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...
sits across the lake from
St. Charles and is south of
Montpelier.
[ ]Bear Lake National Wildlife Refuge
Bear Lake National Wildlife Refuge is located in southeast Idaho, seven miles (11 km) south of Montpelier. Surrounded by mountains, it lies in Bear Lake Valley at an elevation ranging from on the marsh to on the rocky slopes of Merkley Mo ...
lies adjacent to the park's north unit.[
]
History
The state purchased land for the park in 1969 using funds supplied through the Recreation and Public Purposes Act. At the same time, the North Beach unit was leased from Utah Power and Light.[ Management of the north unit continues under lease from ]PacifiCorp
PacifiCorp is an electric power company in the western United States.
PacifiCorp has two business units:
# Pacific Power, a regulated electric utility with service territory throughout Oregon, northern California, and southeastern Washington.
# ...
.[
]
Wildlife
This state park is home to bonneville cisco
The Bonneville cisco (''Prosopium gemmifer'') is a species of cisco endemic to Bear Lake along the Utah-Idaho border, United States. It is one of three species of whitefish endemic to Bear Lake, the others being the Bear Lake whitefish and the ...
, cutthroat trout
The cutthroat trout is a fish species of the family Salmonidae native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean, Rocky Mountains, and Great Basin in North America. As a member of the genus '' Oncorhynchus'', it is one of the Pacific tro ...
, moose
The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult mal ...
, pelican
Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
s, lake trout, deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
, cranes and cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...
.
Features
Bear Lake owes its turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of yea ...
blue color to the presence of suspended calcium carbonate (limestone).[ The park's two units each have a beach over in length with gradually sloping lake bottom and large swimming area. Camping is offered in the east unit. In winter, the park provides ]ice fishing
Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities.
Shelters
Longer ...
access for the annual runs of Bonneville cisco
The Bonneville cisco (''Prosopium gemmifer'') is a species of cisco endemic to Bear Lake along the Utah-Idaho border, United States. It is one of three species of whitefish endemic to Bear Lake, the others being the Bear Lake whitefish and the ...
.[
]
See also
* List of Idaho state parks
This is a list of Idaho's 27 state parks managed by the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation. IIdaho state code there are 30 state parks listed, including Mowry State Park, Veteran's State Park, and Glade Creek. While these three remai ...
* National Parks in Idaho
The six national parks, reserves, historic sites, and monuments in Idaho contain a wide variety of interesting places and experiences. These include recreational areas, archeological sites, nature preserves and volcanic parks.
The parks City of ...
References
External links
Bear Lake State Park
Idaho Parks and Recreation
Bear Lake State Park Location Map
Idaho Parks and Recreation
{{authority control
State parks of Idaho
Protected areas of Bear Lake County, Idaho
Provincial and state parks in the Rocky Mountains
Protected areas established in 1969
1969 establishments in Idaho