Lake Kapowsin

Lake Kapowsin
Lake Kapowsin
Location Pierce County, Washington
Coordinates 46°58′42″N 122°13′07″W / 46.97833°N 122.21861°W / 46.97833; -122.21861Coordinates: 46°58′42″N 122°13′07″W / 46.97833°N 122.21861°W / 46.97833; -122.21861
Primary inflows Ohop Creek
Primary outflows Kapowsin Creek
Surface area 512 acres (207 ha)
Average depth 20–30 ft (6.1–9.1 m)[1]
Max. depth 30 ft (9.1 m)[1]
Surface elevation 584 ft (178 m)[2]
Settlements

Lake Kapowsin is a lake in Pierce County, Washington, about halfway between Tacoma on Puget Sound, and Mount Rainier in the Cascade Mountains. The lake is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long and 0.15–0.5 miles (0.24–0.80 km) wide, lying in a channel formed by meltwater from the Puget lobe of the Vashon glacier during the Pleistocene glaciation. A small unnamed island lies in the northern half of the lake.[3] As indicated by a drowned forest in the lake and other evidence, the Puyallup River was inundated about 550 years ago by a lahar from Mount Rainier called the Electron Mudflow.[4] The mudflow partially filled the channel (leading to its shallow, smooth bottom today) and blocked Ohop Creek's outlet, forming present-day Lake Kapowsin.[1]:A69–A70

The Tacoma Rail shortline runs along the west side of the lake, as does Orville Road connecting Eatonville to the south with the town of Kapowsin.

The lake contains a number of fish species and is stocked with rainbow trout, rated "excellent" for fishing by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, as is the yellow perch.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Crandell, Dwight R. (1963), "Surficial geology and geomorphology, Lake Tapps quadrangle, Washington", Geologic Studies in the Puget Sound Lowland, Washington, United States Geological Survey / U.S. Government Printing Office, pp. A1–A81, Geological Survey Professional Paper 388
  2. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Lake Kapowsin
  3. ↑ 7.5 minute quadrangle map "Lake Kapowsin, WA", United States Geological Survey
  4. ↑ Crandell, D.R. (1971). "Postglacial Lahars From Mount Rainier Volcano, Washington". U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper. 677.
  5. ↑ Lake Kapowsin, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

Further reading


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