Klonaqua Lakes are a set of freshwater reservoir

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

s located on the western slope of The Enchantments, in Chelan County,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

. Self-issued Alpine Lake Wilderness permit required for transit within the Klonaqua Lakes area.

Name

Along with neighboring lakes, Klonaqua Lakes were given its name by Albert Hale Sylvester, a topographer for the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

working throughout the

North Cascades National Park Complex North Cascades National Park is an American national park in the state of Washington. At more than , it is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Complex. North Cascades National Par ...

in the 1900s. Sylvester compounded the word from the Chinook Jargon ''klone'' with the Wenatchi language word ''aqua'' to mean ''three waters''.

History

Archaeological surveying in the area of the

Snow Lakes Snow Lakes are a system of freshwater reservoir lakes made by Upper Snow Lake and Lower Snow Lake, approximately a mile long.Cole, D., & Hall, T. (2007). Conditions, experiences, coping behaviors, visitor evaluations and management preferences a ...

shows evidence that the occupation of indigenous groups dated to at least 12,000 years before the present era. Klonaqua Lake is within the traditional territory of the Wenatchi People, one of the Confederated Tribes of the

Colville Reservation The Colville Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in the northwest United States, in north central Washington, inhabited and managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, which is federally recognized. Established in ...

and within the ceded lands of the Yakama Nation. Icicle Irrigation District applied in 1926 for the right to divert water from Klonaqua Lakes at a rate of approximately 25 cfs (cubic feet per second) for seasonal irrigation purposes. The State Supervisor of Hydraulics issued Permit Number 828 in January 1927 for the requested amount. The irrigation district also sought permission to raise the lake levels because of inadequate summer flows for irrigation. The Department of Public Lands approved this request in an October 1927 order that allowed the irrigation district to inundate lakeshores on the lake.

Geography

Klonaqua Lake sits in a basin consisting of rocky soils and igneous tonalite geology. The

bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid Rock (geology), rock that lies under loose material (regolith) within the crust (geology), crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface mater ...

is about 3 feet from the surface and mapped as granites of the Mount Stuart Batholith (Mesozoic

intrusive rock Intrusive rock is formed when magma penetrates existing rock, crystallizes, and solidifies underground to form ''Igneous intrusion, intrusions'', such as batholiths, dike (geology), dikes, Sill (geology), sills, laccoliths, and volcanic necks.I ...

s) and

ultramafic Ultramafic rocks (also referred to as ultrabasic rocks, although the terms are not wholly equivalent) are igneous and meta-igneous rocks with a very low silica content (less than 45%), generally >18% MgO, high FeO, low potassium, and are composed ...

/ metamorphic of the Ingalls Tectonic Complex (Mesozoic-Paleozoic ultramafic rocks). The trail to the lake consists of sandy

loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–sil ...

the first half and boulders added in the second half of the trajectory.

Climate

The Klonaqua lakes are within a hemiboreal climate. The average temperature is 0 °C. The warmest month is August, with an average temperature of 14 °C, and the coldest month is January, at an average of −11 °C. The average rainfall is 1,989 millimeters per year. The wettest month is December, with 265 millimeters of rain, and the least in July, with 39 millimeters of rain.

Uses

Klonaqua Lakes are managed by the Icicle and Peshastin Irrigation Districts (IPID) to provide water storage for

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...

. The lake captures water runoff at the far southeast of a 3,800-acre

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, t ...

which gives the lake a high potential for refill, even during dry years. Between

Eightmile Lake Eightmile Lake is a reservoir lake located on the eastern slope of Eightmile Mountain, in Chelan County in Washington. It is a reservoir lake formed along the beginning route of Eightmile Creek as it exits Jack Ridge. The lake is located approx ...

Colchuck Lake Colchuck Lake is a freshwater reservoir lake located on the western slope of The Enchantments, in Chelan County, Washington. The lake is located approximately 15 miles from the city of Leavenworth, Washington and sits on the southeast corner ...

and Klonaqua Lake, the total average usable storage volume is 6,600 acre-feet. Additional usage storage volume of approximately 12,730 acre-feet is available from

. Both reservoirs are contained by a small

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

consisting of a rock and masonry structure with stop logs and an earthen embankment section that extends from the rock-masonry/concrete structure to the hillside north of the dam. The dam is fitted with a low-level outlet pipeline and a slide gate at the outlet of the lake. This infrastructure allows for controlled releases of stored water to supplement flows into an unnamed creek, which flows to French Creek, a tributary of

Icicle Creek Icicle Creek is a nonNavigable stream in the U.S. state of Washington. It originates at Josephine Lake near the crest of the Cascade Range and flows generally east to join the Wenatchee River near Leavenworth. Icicle Creek's drainage basin is mo ...

and increase the water supply available during low flow periods, which typically occur during the late summer.

Access

Access to Klonaqua Lakes is through Klonaqua trail which spins off French Creek Trail. The trail ascends steeply and splits at Bobs Lake () in order to access both main lakes. Camping sites are dotted along Klonaqua Lakes. Bobs Lakes is also lined with campsites as overflow and is stocked with trout.Vicky Spring, Ira Spring, Harvey Mannin
100 Hikes in the Alpine Lakes

Mountaineers Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...

, 1985. Accessed 2 July 2021

2017 fire

On August 11, 2017 lightning caused by a cold frontal passage that tracked through the

Alpine Lakes Wilderness The Alpine Lakes Wilderness is a large National Wilderness Preservation System, wilderness area spanning the Central Cascades of Washington (state), Washington state in the United States. The wilderness is located in parts of Wenatchee National F ...

started a fire about 15 miles southwest of Leavenworth, Washington. The fire expanded into the

, Stuart Lake and Klonaqua drainages burning to the shoreline and damaging a large percentage of the lake's watershed. The fire has caused a potential change in runoff into the lake.

References

{{authority control Lakes of Chelan County, Washington Lakes of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness Okanogan National Forest