Cropley Lake

Cropley Lake
Location Juneau, Alaska, United States
Coordinates 58°15′49″N 134°31′29″W / 58.26361°N 134.52472°WCoordinates: 58°15′49″N 134°31′29″W / 58.26361°N 134.52472°W
Basin countries United States
Surface elevation 553 m (1,814 ft)

Cropley Lake is an alpine lake in the City and Borough of Juneau, Alaska, United States. Located on Douglas Island, it is 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of Table Top Mountain, and 5 miles (8.0 km) southwest of the city of Juneau. Cropley Lake is the source of Fish Creek.[1]

History

It is named after Isaac Cropley, a miner who worked in the Juneau area from around 1887 until his death in 1913. The name was collected by the United States Geological Survey between 1976 and 1981, and entered into the Geographic Names Information System on March 31, 1981.[2][3]

In 1975, the Juneau Lions Club built a trail from the Eaglecrest Ski Area to the lake. It was used actively for about ten years, but a lack of maintenance cause the trail to become overgrown.[4] The trail was between 1.5 and 2 miles (2.4 and 3.2 km) long.[5][6] On June 7, 2010, the Juneau Assembly was to appropriate a $133,180 grant from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources to fund improvements to a nearby trail from the Eaglecrest lodge to a bridge over Fish Creek. Excess funds were to be used to build a new trail to Cropley Lake.[7] Planned improvements to the Eaglecrest Ski Area include a day-use cabin at Cropley Lake.[8] In the 1990s, the ski area used about 218,000 US gallons (830,000 l) of water from the lake every day and a total of about 79,574,000 US gallons (301,220,000 l) per year. The water is used for hydroelectric power generation.[9]

Skiers have had some close run-ins with avalanches near the lake, including in 1987 and on March 1, 2001.[10]

Wildlife and climate

Just below the lake there is a barrier to prevent upstream fish movement.[11] Between June 26 and 27, 2010, Juneau-area scientists conducted a two-day wildlife survey of the Cropley Lake/Fish Creek drainage area. Dolly Varden trout has been noted residing in the lake.[12][13][14] The fish in the lake are small, ranging from 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 cm).[15] A single Clark's Nutcracker was seen at the lake on July 5, 1975.[16]

Cropley Lake is located in a cirque. The soil around the shores of the lake consists mainly of muskeg covering till (glacial sediment) above bedrock. Trees on the shore are up to about 400 years old. The lake is naturally dammed but also has two small man-made dams to raise its level.[17]

References

  1. ↑ USGS GNIS Feature Detail Report: Fish Creek
  2. ↑ USGS GNIS Feature Detail Report: Cropley Lake
  3. ↑ DeArmond, Robert. Some Names Around Juneau. Sitka Press. 1957.
  4. ↑ Kelley, Tim. Juneau Lions Club - Cropley Lake Trail. Alaska Lost Ski Areas Project. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  5. ↑ DuFresne, Jim. Alaska: A Travel Survival Kit. Lonely Planet. 1994.
  6. ↑ Barrett, Pam. Alaska. Insight Guides, Langenscheidt. 2002.
  7. ↑ Juneau Daily News Latest Edition. Alaska Juneau Communications - KINY Radio. June 7, 2010. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  8. ↑ Marquis, Kim (December 12, 2007). "Eaglecrest receives financial windfall". Juneau Empire. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  9. ↑ Ireland, Roy, and Mauer, Mary A. Summary of Reported Water-Use Data in Alaska, 1994 PDF (1.37 MB) Alaska Department of Natural Resources. December 1995. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  10. ↑ Chandonnet, Ann (March 2, 2001). "Two escape white death". Juneau Empire. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  11. ↑ Bethers, Mike; Munk, Kris; and Seifert, Cheryl. Juneau Fish Habitat Assessment. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. 1995.
  12. ↑ Woodford, Riley (June 11, 2010). "BioBlitz: Celebrate, explore nature". Juneau Empire. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  13. ↑ BioBlitz Southeast Alaska PDF (696.72 KB) Accessed July 11, 2010.
  14. ↑ Willson, Mary (November 2, 2008). "Checking out the wildlife at Cropley Lake". Juneau Empire. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  15. ↑ Juneau Area Fishing Report. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  16. ↑ Erwin, Carol. [alaskabirds-l] addendum to Clark's Nutcracker posting. University of Alaska Fairbanks alaskabirds mailing list. August 22, 2002. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  17. ↑ Miller, Robert D. Surficial Geology of the Juneau Urban Area and Vicinity, Alaska PDF (6.5 MB) United States Department of the Interior. 1972. Accessed July 11, 2010.