Lake Hazen

The Lake Hazen ( German Hazensee ) is in Quttinirpaaq National Park in the north of Ellesmere Island. He is the northernmost major lake in Canada and in America 's largest lake north of the Arctic Circle.

Geography

The Hazensee is situated in the polar desert of Ellesmere Island. To about the 1,600 -meter high mountain range Garfield stretches along its northern flank along, and in the south it is from 300 to 1300 meters rising Hazen Plateau surrounded. The Hazen Basin consists mainly of fine-grained sediment and karbonatreichem sandstone.

Located at an altitude of 158 meters and with a shore length of 185 km, it extends from southwest to northeast and is completely free of ice only in particularly warm years. Its northeastern end lies about 118 kilometers southwest of Alert. In the lake are several islands; the largest is St. John's Iceland, about 7 miles long, less than 1 km wide and oriented like the lake from southwest to northeast. Other islands are gate Iceland and Clay Iceland (near the northeastern shore ) and Whisler Iceland and Iceland Dyas (near the south shore ).

The lake is fed by the runoff of many icefields and usually unnamed glaciers of the surrounding Eureka Upland, including the mighty, the Garfield mountain chain by breaking Henrietta Nesmith Glacier (named after the wife of the discoverer of the lake, Adolphus Washington Greely ). The catchment area of the lake covers 4900 km ².

The only effluent is 22 km long Ruggles River, whose output does not completely iced over from the southeast coast of the lake itself at -60 ° C; it flows into the Chandler Fjord, whose water flow through the Conybeare Fjord and the Lady Franklin Bay to Nares Strait.

Named tributaries

At the southwest end ( from south to north ):

• Very River
• Adams River

On the northwest coast (from southwest to northeast ):

• Turnstone River
• Henrietta River
• Ptarmigan Creek
• Blister Creek
• Skeleton Creek
• Snow Goose River
• Abbé River
• Cuesta Creek
• Mesa Creek
• Gilman River

At the northeast end ( from north to south ):

• Turnabout River
• Salor Creek

On the southeast coast (only in the southwest near the southwest end ):

• Cobb River
• Traverse River

Climatic conditions

Against the cold polar air currents, which generally emphasize on the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Hazensee is protected on the north by the Garfield mountain range and on the south by the Hazen Plateau. Under the supervening influence of seeming to 148 days, midnight sun its surroundings therefore forms a thermal " oasis ", which remains in summer with average midday temperatures of up to 20 ° C above freezing to about 70 days.

History

About 4,000 years ago, were the first people Paleo- Eskimos of the Pre- Dorset culture to the Hazensee. Archaeological traces that later people of the Dorset culture, and finally the Thule culture followed them.

1882, during the First International Polar Year, discovered the then Lieutenant General Adolphus Washington Greely and later by the American Research Station Fort Conger from the lake.

During the International Geophysical Year (July 1, 1957 to December 31, 1958 ) was on the north shore of the lake at the height of St. John's Iceland " Hazen Camp " built as a research base ( Lage81.816666666667 - 71.4166666666670 ). As the region was left uncovered around the lake during the last ice age glaciers, located voreiszeitliche organisms were able to get what lies behind even after 1958 still great scientific interest.

Fauna and Flora

Compared to the surrounding mountains a stronger vegetation and thus richer wildlife has evolved in the Hazensee oasis. The end of July, early August bloom on mats of mosses, lichens, dwarf birch and willow, yellow Arctic poppies, Plain-leaved Avens and red cushions of the stalk lots Leimkrauts.

The scenery by pulling musk ox and Peary caribou. Moreover, in this case polar hares and lemmings live. You all serve the plants as food. You turn feed predators such as polar wolves that have been proven for more than 1,000 years occur here, and arctic foxes.

Bird species are found in the heart of Ellesmere Island only a few; they breed on the food richer for it coasts.

In Hazensee only a single species occurs, the char, which has developed here in unusual sizes.

Tourist comments

Starting point for tours to the Hazensee is Tanquary Camp, the base camp at the end of Tanquary Fjord ( Lage81.416666666667 - 76,750 ) 70 km southwest of the Hazensees, the Parks Canada as an input to Quttinirpaaq National Park maintains. Tour -goers break usually on from here to hike on one of the usual routes in eight to twelve days Hazensee. The return is usually done with a pre-booked charter aircraft. Sometimes the reverse route is selected.