Walker Lake
| Walker Lake | ||
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| Geographical location | Mineral County in Nevada (USA) | |
| Tributaries | Walker River | |
| Drain | drainless | |
| Data | ||
| Coordinates | 38 ° 41 ′ N , 118 ° 43 ′ W | |
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| Altitude above sea level | 1207 m | |
| surface | 130 km² | |
| length | 29 km | |
| width | 11 km | |
| Maximum depth | 40 m | |
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| Walker Lake | ||
The Walker Lake [ wɔːkɚ leɪk ] is a natural salt lake in the Great Basin of the United States of America . It is located in the western part of Nevada at the foot of the Wassuk Range and covers an area of 130 km² in Mineral County . It is 29 km long and up to eleven kilometers wide.
history
The lake is a remnant of prehistoric Lake Lahontan , which covered most of northwestern Nevada during the Ice Age with an area of 20,700 km². Unlike Pyramid Lake, the lake has dried up several times since the end of the Pleistocene , possibly as a result of natural deflections of the Walker River into the Carsons Depression .
In the 19th century , the region around the lake was populated by the Paiute Indians. Extensive water abstraction from the Walker River and its tributaries caused a significant drop in the water level at Walker Lake at the time and from the late 19th century at the latest. According to the USGS , the level fell by about 40 meters between 1882 and 1994 and brought greater water pollution with it. The salt concentration has been so high since 2004 that most of the fish population is threatened.
Web links
- USGS: Walker Basin (Engl.)
- Walker Lake State Park (Engl.)