Cropley Lake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cropley Lake |
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 Cropley Lake
Location in Alaska
Cropley Lake
Location in North America
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| Location | Juneau, Alaska, United States |
| Coordinates | 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 a beautiful alpine lake (a lake high in the mountains) located in Juneau, Alaska, United States. It sits on Douglas Island, which is about 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of Table Top Mountain. The lake is also about 5 miles (8 km) southwest of the city of Juneau. Cropley Lake is important because it is the starting point for Fish Creek.
History of Cropley Lake
The lake is named after Isaac Cropley, a miner who worked in the Juneau area. He lived and worked there from around 1887 until he passed away in 1913. The name "Cropley Lake" was officially recorded by the United States Geological Survey between 1976 and 1981. It was added to the Geographic Names Information System on March 31, 1981.
In 1975, the Juneau Lions Club built a hiking trail from the Eaglecrest Ski Area to the lake. This trail was used a lot for about ten years. However, because it wasn't kept up, the trail became overgrown and hard to use. The trail was between 1.5 and 2 miles (2.4 and 3.2 km) long.
On June 7, 2010, the local government, known as the Juneau Assembly, planned to use a grant of $133,180. This money came from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. It was meant to improve a nearby trail from the Eaglecrest lodge to a bridge over Fish Creek. Any extra money was planned to be used to build a new trail to Cropley Lake.
There are also plans for the Eaglecrest Ski Area to build a day-use cabin at Cropley Lake. In the 1990s, the ski area used a lot of water from the lake. They used about 218,000 gallons (825,200 liters) of water every day. This water was used to create hydroelectric power, which is electricity made from moving water.
Skiers have had some close calls with avalanches near the lake. These events happened in 1987 and again on March 1, 2001.
Wildlife and Environment
Just below Cropley Lake, there is a special barrier. This barrier helps prevent fish from swimming upstream into the lake. Between June 26 and 27, 2010, scientists from the Juneau area studied the wildlife around Cropley Lake and the Fish Creek area. They found Dolly Varden trout living in the lake. The fish in the lake are usually small, measuring from 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 cm) long. On July 5, 1975, a single Clark's nutcracker bird was seen at the lake.
Cropley Lake is located in a cirque. A cirque is a bowl-shaped valley that was carved out by glaciers. The ground around the lake's edges is mostly made of muskeg, which is a type of swampy, mossy ground. This muskeg covers till, which is sediment left behind by glaciers, and below that is solid bedrock. The trees growing on the shore of the lake can be up to 400 years old. The lake is naturally held back by land, but it also has two small man-made dams. These dams help to raise the lake's water level.
