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Canyon Ferry Lake is a
reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
on the Missouri River near Helena, Montana and
Townsend, Montana Townsend is a city in and the county seat of Broadwater County, Montana, United States. The population was 1,787 at the 2020 census. History Lewis and Clark passed through on the voyage of discovery in 1805, although the first white settlers, ...
. It is Montana's third largest body of water, covering 35,181 acres (142 km²) and 76 miles (122 km) of shor
(1)
It was formed by the building of Canyon Ferry Dam, which was completed in 1954 and has been used for electricity, irrigation, and flood controls since.


Recreation

The lake is a popular outdoor destination providing boating, fishing, wildlife habitat, and is nestled against the
Big Belt Mountains The Big Belt Mountains are a section of the Rocky Mountains in the U.S. state of Montana. Situated mainly in the Helena National Forest, the mountains are used for logging and recreation for the surrounding residents. Nearby are the cities of Hel ...
of the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
. Canyon Ferry Lake has also become a leading ice boat venue for iceboat racing and iceboat world speed record attempts. The former town of Canton lies beneath the lake, having been submerged following construction of the dam. File:Canyon Ferry Yacht Basin.jpg, Canyon Ferry Lake, north end, viewed from Yacht Basin Marina. File:CanyonFerryDamoverhead.jpg, Aerial View of Canyon Ferry Lake and Canyon Ferry Dam. File:Big Belts and Canyon Ferry.jpg, Canyon Ferry Lake in foreground as seen from U.S. Highway 12 near Townsend, Montana. Big Belt Mountains in background. File:Map Pick–Sloan Missouri Basin Program.png, Location of Canyon Ferry Lake and other reservoirs and dams built in the Pick–Sloan Program since the 1940s.


Fishing

The lake is regularly stocked with fish. Canyon Ferry Reservoir continues to be one of the most popular angling destinations in the state of Montana.


See also

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List of lakes in Montana There are at least 3,223 named lakes and reservoirs in Montana. The following list contains lists of lakes and reservoirs in Montana by county. A lake is a terrain feature (or physical feature), a body of liquid on the surface of a world that i ...
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List of dams in the Missouri River watershed This is a list of dams in the watershed of the Missouri River, a tributary of the Mississippi River, in the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a c ...


References


External links


Canyon Ferry Lake (Official website)
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), Department of the Interior
Current Reservoir Data
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Canyon Ferry Lake Information
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Canyon Ferry Recreation Map
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation {{authority control Bodies of water of Broadwater County, Montana Bodies of water of Lewis and Clark County, Montana Reservoirs in Montana Buildings and structures in Broadwater County, Montana Buildings and structures in Lewis and Clark County, Montana Protected areas of Lewis and Clark County, Montana Protected areas of Broadwater County, Montana 1954 establishments in Montana