Devils Kitchen Lake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Devil's Kitchen Lake |
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 Devil's Kitchen Lake
Location in Illinois
Devil's Kitchen Lake
Location in the United States
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| Location | Williamson County, Illinois |
| Coordinates | 37°37′33″N 89°05′33″W / 37.6259°N 89.0926°W |
| Type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Grassy Creek |
| Primary outflows | Grassy Creek |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Max. length | 4 mi (6.4 km) |
| Max. width | 0.25 mi (0.40 km) |
| Surface area | 810 acres (330 ha) |
| Max. depth | 90 ft (27 m) |
Devil's Kitchen Lake is a beautiful lake in southern Illinois. It's a large reservoir, which means it's a man-made lake. The lake was created by building a dam across a stream called Grassy Creek. This creek flows into Crab Orchard Lake and then into the Big Muddy River.
The lake covers about 810 acres (3.3 square kilometers). Most of Devil's Kitchen Lake is in Williamson County. It's located southwest of the city of Marion, Illinois. You can easily reach the lake from Interstate 57. Parts of the lake also stretch into nearby Union County. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service helps manage and protect this special lake.
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How the Lake Was Formed
Devil's Kitchen Lake is in a very interesting part of Illinois. Unlike most of the state, this area was not covered by glaciers during the Ice Ages. This means the land here is not flat. Instead, it has deep valleys made of sandstone and steep hills.
Devil's Kitchen Lake sits in one of these deep valleys. This is why it's one of the deepest lakes in all of Illinois. Some parts of the lake are as deep as 90 feet (27 meters)!
Building the Lake
The land around Devil's Kitchen Lake wasn't great for farming. Early settlers in the 1800s tried to clear the land. But it wasn't easy to grow crops there. During the Great Depression in the 1930s, the government bought much of this land. This was part of a plan to help farmers and improve the land.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a group that helped build many public works projects. They first built Crab Orchard Lake in the 1930s. Soon after, Devil's Kitchen Lake and Little Grassy Lake were created. These new lakes helped make sure Crab Orchard Lake had enough water. They also created more places for people to enjoy the outdoors.
The land around Devil's Kitchen Lake became part of important natural areas. These include the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge, Crab Orchard Wilderness, Panther Den Wilderness, and Shawnee National Forest.
Enjoying the Lake Today
Devil's Kitchen Lake is a great spot for fishing. Because it's so deep, it's a perfect home for rainbow trout. These cool-water fish usually don't do well in most Illinois lakes. You can also find other popular fish here. These include largemouth bass, bluegill, and crappie.
The land around the lake is managed by the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge. There are three places where you can launch a boat. These are on the north end, the western shore, and the eastern shore. If you bring a boat, remember there's a power limit. Boat motors must be 10 horsepower or less.
Things to Know for Visitors
Some parts of the lake have underwater snags. These are the stumps of old trees that were there before the valley was flooded. Fishermen should be careful of these snags.
It's important to know that swimming is not allowed in Devil's Kitchen Lake.
There is a small fee to drive your car to the lake shore. The closest highway exit is Exit 45 on Interstate 57.
