Rainy Lake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Rainy Lake | |
|---|---|
| Location | North America |
| Coordinates | |
| Lake type | remnant of former glacial Lake Agassiz |
| Primary inflows | Namakan Lake Kabetogama Lake |
| Primary outflows | Rainy River |
| Basin countries | Canada, United States |
| Max. length | 80 km |
| Max. width | 48 km |
| Surface area | 932 km² |
| Max. depth | 50 m highly variable |
| Shore length1 | 1,500 km 2,520 km (w/ Islands) highly irregular, rocky shoreline |
| Surface elevation | 338 m |
| Islands | ~1,600 |
| Settlements | International Falls, MN Fort Frances, Ontario |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Rainy Lake (French: lac à la Pluie) is a relatively large lake (345 sq mi or 894 km²) that straddles the border between the United States and Canada. The Rainy River issues from the west side of the lake and is used to make hydroelectricity in the US city of International Falls, which is situated at the outflow of the river from the lake along with its sister town on the Canadian side, Fort Frances, making the river the boundary between the two countries. Voyageurs National Park is located on the southeastern corner of the lake where it connects with Kabetogama and Namakan Lakes. Rainy Lake is part of an extremely large system of lakes stretching from the Great Lakes north to the Arctic Ocean. The levels of these lakes are regulated by the International Joint Commission (IJC). The IJC was founded as a result of the International Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 and is an independent international body. Rainy Lake is important in governing water levels because of the hydroelectric dam situated near the town of International Falls, Minnesota.
The lake is currently a hot spot for sport and recreational fishing of fish such as Walleye, Northern pike, Muskellunge, Largemouth and Smallmouth bass, which are all considered excellent freshwater sportfish. Rainy Lake is home to the Canadian Bass Championship, which has occurred every summer since 1996. The lake is dotted with many small islands on both the Canadian and American sides that contain numerous fishing cabins, small fishing resorts, and vacation homes, making tourism an important part of the local economy.
[edit] Geology
Geologically Rainy Lake is part of the Canadian Shield and retains features associated with it, such as a large, ancient caldera and a fault line that can be clearly seen in satellite images of the lake. The rock under the lake and exposed on many of its islands is an exposed part of the North American craton composed of ancient Precambrian rock. This rock has been significantly affected by glaciation which dominates much of the recent geologic history of the area.
