Waskesiu Lake

Waskesiu Lake
Waskesiu Lake
Waskesiu Lake Location in Saskatchewan Show map of Saskatchewan Waskesiu Lake Waskesiu Lake (Canada) Show map of Canada
Location	Prince Albert National Park, Saskatchewan
Coordinates	53.9566°N 106.1955°W / 53.9566; -106.1955
Primary inflows	Kingsmere River
Primary outflows	Waskesiu River
Basin countries	Canada
Surface area	7,107.7 ha (17,564 acres)
Max. depth	19 m (62 ft)
Shore length^1	114 km (71 mi)
Surface elevation	532 m (1,745 ft)
Islands	King Island
Settlements	Waskesiu Lake
References	[1]
^1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Waskesiu Lake[2] (/ˌwɑːskəˈsuː/) is a lake located roughly in the centre of Prince Albert National Park. The lake's name means red deer or elk in the Cree language. Waskesiu Lake is by far the most developed lake in the park, and features a variety of recreational facilities along all sides of its shoreline, including camping, golfing, boating, and hiking. The resort village of Waskesiu Lake is on its eastern shore. The Prince Albert National Park Nature Centre is located in the village as well as many other amenities such as lodging, police, a gas station, shopping, and restaurants. Access to the lake is from Highways 263 and 264.

Description

Waskesiu Lake sits north-east of the Waskesiu Hills[3] and is in the Churchill River drainage basin. The south flowing rivers out of the Waskesiu Hills, including Spruce and Spruce Rivers, flow into the North Saskatchewan River and the ones flowing north out of the hills flow into the Waskesiu Lake catchment.[4] Some of these rivers include Deadwood Creek, Beetle Creek, Moose Creek, and Beartrap Creek. Prince Albert National Park's third largest lake, Kingsmere Lake, connects to Waskasiu Lake at its northern end via Kingsmere River. The Waskesiu River, located at the east end of the lake, is the outflow and it heads north-east to Montreal Lake.[5]

Waskesiu Lake has one island off its western shore known as King Island (formerly Devil's Island). It is named after park founder and Canada's 10th prime minister,William Lyon Mackenzie King.

Recreation

Being the recreational centre of Prince Albert National Park, there are a wide variety of activities in and around the lake, including camping at Beaver Glen,[6] Narrows,[7] and Red Deer Campgrounds.[8][9] At the village of Waskesiu, there are resorts and cabins such as Baker's Bungalows and Lost Creek Resort[10] Waskesiu Golf Course is located on the south side of the village.[11] Several trails begin at the lake, including one that leads to Grey Owl's cabin at Ajawaan Lake. Several beaches also are scattered around the lake including, Birch Bay Beach, Trippes Beach, Paignton Beach, Narrows Beach, and Waskesiu Main Beach.

Fish species

Fish commonly found in Waskesiu Lake include walleye, northern pike, yellow perch, and cisco.[12][13]

See also

• List of lakes of Saskatchewan
• List of place names in Canada of Indigenous origin
• Tourism in Saskatchewan

References

1. "Waskesiu Lake Fishing Map". GPS Nautical Charts. Bist LLC. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
2. "Waskesiu Lake". Canadian Geographical Names Database. Government of Canada. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
3. "Waskesiu Hills". Canadian Geographical Names Database. Government of Canada. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
4. "Wasesiu Upland". The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. University of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
5. "Maps showing Waskesiu Lake, Saskatchewan". Canmaps. Yellow Maps. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
6. "Beaver Glen Campground". Tourism Saskatchewan. Government of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
7. "Narrows Campground". Tourism Saskatchewan. Government of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
8. "Red Deer Campground". Tourism Saskatchewan. Government of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
9. "Prince Albert National Park Front Country Camp grounds". Parks Canada. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
10. "Lost Creek Resort". Lost Creek Resort. Lost Creek Resort. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
11. "Waskesiu Golf Course". Waskesiu Golf. Waskesiu Golf. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
12. "Waskesiu Lake". Angler's Atlas. Angler's Atlas. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
13. "Fishing in Waskesiu Lake". Fishbrain. Fishbrain. Retrieved 5 September 2022.

External links

Media related to Waskesiu Lake at Wikimedia Commons