Rainbow Lake (Arizona) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rainbow Lake |
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 Rainbow Lake
Location in Arizona
Rainbow Lake
Location in the United States
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| Location | Navajo County, Arizona |
| Coordinates | 34°8′59.59″N 109°59′3.50″W / 34.1498861°N 109.9843056°W |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Surface area | 80 acres (32 ha) |
| Average depth | 6 ft (1.8 m) |
| Surface elevation | 6,700 ft (2,000 m) |
Rainbow Lake is a cool lake in Arizona, United States. It's a man-made lake, meaning people built it. The lake covers about 116 acres and is located near the town of Pinetop-Lakeside in Navajo County. It was created in 1903 when early settlers built a dam across Walnut Creek. They needed the water to help grow their crops.
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History of Rainbow Lake
People started living in the areas of Lakeside and Pinetop in the early 1880s. These small towns grew and eventually joined together. In 1986, they officially became the town of Pinetop-Lakeside.
Rainbow Lake was first built to store water for a company called the Pinetop-Woodland Lake Irrigation Company. This company still owns all the water in the lake that is used for farming. The amount of water in the lake can change a lot. It depends on the season, how much rain falls, and how much water the irrigation company needs.
The land right around the lake is mostly owned by private people. This means it's not usually open to the public. However, the Arizona Game and Fish Department owns a small piece of land on the northwest side. Here, they have a public spot where people can go fishing and enjoy boating. Rainbow Lake is now just outside the main part of Pinetop-Lakeside, next to Arizona State Route 260.
About Rainbow Lake
Rainbow Lake is about 116 acres big. At its deepest, it's about 14 feet, but on average, it's about 7 feet deep. It's part of the Walnut Creek water system, which also fills two other lakes nearby: Woodland Park Lake and Lake of the Woods. Many homes are built around Rainbow Lake, including a private community called Shores at Rainbow Lake. The lake is a popular place for fun activities in the Pinetop-Lakeside area. People love to fish, boat, and watch the local animals here.
Fish and Wildlife in Rainbow Lake
The Arizona Game and Fish Department regularly adds rainbow trout to the lake in the spring and early summer for fishing. Other fish that live naturally in the lake include largemouth bass, channel catfish, black bullhead, bluegill, and green sunfish. Unfortunately, some northern pike have also been put into the lake illegally.
Because Rainbow Lake is not very deep and has a lot of plants, it can sometimes have problems with its water quality.
Controlling Weeds in Rainbow Lake
In the past, Rainbow Lake had a big problem with unwanted water plants, especially a type called Eurasian watermilfoil. A local group of volunteers, the Show Low Creek Watershed Enhancement Partnership (SLCWEP), tried to fix this. In 2011, they used a special treatment to get rid of the weeds.
However, the results weren't as good as they hoped. Another problematic weed called coontail quickly grew in its place. Now, another group, the Rainbow Lake Coalition, is working on a new plan. They want to introduce sterile white Amur carp into the lake. These carp are a type of fish that eat water plants and have been shown to control weeds for many years.
To make sure these carp don't escape and cause problems in other lakes, the Arizona Game and Fish Department requires special steps. The Rainbow Lake Coalition is now working to build a fish barrier. This barrier will be on Walnut Creek, below Lake of the Woods, which has successfully used these carp for weed control for a long time.
Fish Species You Can Find
