Snow Lake (King County, Washington)

Snow Lake
Snow Lake from eastern shore
(Mount Roosevelt centered)
Location of Snow Lake in Washington, USA.
Location of Snow Lake in Washington, USA.
Snow Lake
Location of Snow Lake in Washington, USA.
Location of Snow Lake in Washington, USA.
Snow Lake
LocationKing County, Washington
Coordinates47°28′1″N 121°27′20″W / 47.46694°N 121.45556°W / 47.46694; -121.45556
Primary inflowsRock Creek (from Gem Lake)
Primary outflowsRock Creek
Basin countriesUnited States
Surface area152.9 acres (61.9 ha)
Surface elevation4,019 ft (1,225 m)
Islands0

Snow Lake is located in King County, Washington. The lake is the "most visited lake in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness."[1] The lake is also stocked with rainbow trout for fishing.[2]

The ruins of a cabin from 1930 exist near the lake, having collapsed in 1950 due to snow.[3][4]

Camping is available via forest service permit. Hikers can continue onwards to nearby Gem Lake or lower/upper Wildcat Lakes.[5]

Climate

Snow Lake has a hemiboreal climate.[6] The average temperature is 3 °C. The warmest month is August, with an average temperature of 15 °C, and the coldest month is January, at an average of −6 °C.[7] The average rainfall is 1,687 millimeters per year. The wettest month is December, with 247 millimeters of rain, and the least in July, with 33 millimeters of rain.

  • Snow Lake Trail map
    Snow Lake Trail map
  • View from the trail on the way to the lake
    View from the trail on the way to the lake
  • The lake in July 2020
    The lake in July 2020

References

  1. ^ Snow Lake Trail at Washington Trails Association.
  2. ^ Fish Stocking for Snow Lake at Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife site.
  3. ^ Berg, Dana (Jun 22, 2007). "Snow Lake Trip Report #1013". Washington Trails Association. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  4. ^ Fenton, Don (Jan 6, 2007). "Camping At Snow Lake in the Nineteen-Forties: During World War II". PIAP. Archived from the original on Feb 27, 2007.
  5. ^ "Snow Lake and Gem Lake". We Found Adventure. September 29, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  6. ^ Peel, M C; Finlayson, B L. "Updated world map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification". Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. 11: 1639–1640. doi:10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  7. ^ "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Retrieved 19 March 2021.


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