Cropley Lake

Cropley Lake is an alpine lake in the 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]

Cropley Lake
Location of Cropley Lake in Alaska, USA.
Location of Cropley Lake in Alaska, USA.
Cropley Lake
Location of Cropley Lake in Alaska, USA.
Location of Cropley Lake in Alaska, USA.
Cropley Lake
LocationJuneau, Alaska, United States
Coordinates58°15′49″N 134°31′29″W
Basin countriesUnited States
Surface elevation553 m (1,814 ft)

History

It is named after Isaac Cropley, a miner who worked in the Juneau area from around 1887 until his death in 1913.[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. "Fish Creek". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. "Cropley Lake". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  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 Archived 2011-06-13 at the Wayback Machine. Alaska Juneau Communications - KINY Radio. June 7, 2010. Accessed July 11, 2010.
  8. Marquis, Kim (December 12, 2007). "Eaglecrest receives financial windfall". Juneau Empire. Archived from the original on August 11, 2011. 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. Archived from the original on December 2, 2009. 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. Archived from the original on December 17, 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  13. "BioBlitz Southeast Alaska" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-07-11. (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 Archived 2012-12-12 at archive.today. 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.
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