Suttle Lake (Oregon)
The Suttle Lake is a natural lake in the vicinity of the main ridge of the Cascade Range in western Oregon in the United States. The lake covers an area of about one square kilometer. It received its name in honor of John Settle. It lies within the Deschutes National Forest. The area around the Suttle Lake is one of the busiest recreational areas in this part of the state. On the shores of the lake are three large campsites and two other areas for day-trippers extend on its southern shore. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife stocked the lake regularly with rainbow trout.
Location
Suttle Lake is located in the Cascade Range to the west of the Jefferson County at an elevation of 1049 m. The lake is located in the Deschutes National Forest, 21 km west of Sisters and 145 kilometers east of Salem in the Willamette Valley. U.S. Highway 20 leads north past the lake, while the distance increases towards the Santiam Pass, which is located 8 km west of the lake.
Suttle Lake is a result of glaciation during the Pleistocene, where the mountains of the Cascade Range were covered by ice. A glacier hollowed out of a deep valley, leaving behind a moraine, which prevented water from flowing over the years and so has created the lake. In the presence of the Suttle Lake is located in a long, narrow valley with relatively steep slopes to the north and south.
History
The Indians already lived about 10,000 years before the arrival of the first European pioneers who discovered the lake and chronicling its location. For centuries, Native Americans used the paths over the Santiam Pass, to get from the Willamette Valley to Zentraloregon. At Suttle Lake, just east of the pass, they found a place for storage, fishing and collecting fruits.
Suttle Lake was named in honor of John Settle, an early settler in the area of Lebanon in the Willamette Valley. Settle was one of the creators and main investors of the Willamette Valley and Cascade Mountain Military Wagon Road, which was built in the mid-1860s. He oversaw a portion of road and found in 1866 on the hunt the lake that now bears his name. This was indeed named after Settle, but his name was misspelled as " Suttle " written when the name was officially registered.
Suttle Lake in 1898 part of the Cascade Range Forest Reserve. The lake was until 1908 part of the Cascade Reserve and later the Cascade National Forest, then the area was the newly formed Deschutes National Forest affiliated.
In the 1920s, the United States Forest Service allowed a partial development of the lakeshore and approved the use for a church summer camp, a log cabin and a few small huts. The Forest Service has also set up three public campgrounds, a lakeside. Today, the Suttle Lake and the surrounding forest to him Sisters Ranger District, an administrative sub-unit of the Deschutes National Forest belong. Fishing on the lake is subject to control by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Catchment area
Suttle Lake is located on the eastern flank of the Cascade Range in central Oregon. about eight kilometers east of Santiam Pass. The largest part of the lake water is trespassing days to groundwater. His only year-round water leading tributary is the Link Creek, which flows into the western end of the lake and it supplies water from Blue Lake. The only outlet of the lake is the Lake Creek, which begins at the east end of the lake and finally, Oregon opens at Camp Sherman in the Metolius River.
The catchment area of the lake covers an area of 55 square kilometers. It is covered by a mixed coniferous forest, and on average fall here 1370-2030 mm rainfall per year. The most common tree species in its catchment area includes ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta subsp. Latifolia ) and jack pine, as well as Douglas fir and other fir species. Due to the catchment area of the lake lies under a blanket dense forest, but the distribution of the pest Choristoneura occidentalis, Western Spruce Budworm an Anglo -called butterfly, 1993 leads to epidemic proportions, and large areas in the region have been deforested. A forest fire in 2003 destroyed a part of the forest near the lake.
Environment and ecology
Suttle Lake is thus a natural lake, which occupies an area of 102 hectares and includes a catchment area of 55 km ². The lake is about 2.3 km long and 650 m wide. The average depth is about 13.5 m, the largest water depth is about 23 m. The bottom of the lake consists mainly of sand, gravel and rock, but in some deeper lying areas of the ground are detritus and sediments present. The riparian areas consist mainly of gravel and rock.
The chemical composition of the water is normal, except for a relatively high concentration of phosphorus, which favors the growth of phytoplankton. At the periphery of the lake water planters are in a narrow zone to a depth of about six meters available, but the majority of the lake is too deep for the growth of aquatic plants.
A number of studies have dealt with the environment and the water quality of the lake. It was determined that the transparency of the water in 1940 resulted in a measure based on Secchi disc depth of 10.7 m, and at the beginning of the 1970s, wavered this 4.3 to 4.9 m. Another Secchi measurement in 1982 showed that this figure had increased to 6.7 m.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife regulates fishing in the Suttle Lake fishery. For the fish population of the lake include rainbow trout, brown trout, sockeye and Coregonidenart Prosopium william soni (English Mountain whitefish ) that largely sustain itself. However, the Authority increased the stock of rainbow trout on a regular basis to maintain a balance of different types of fish. The brown trout in the lake weigh up to 4.5 kilograms, but most are weights from 1.4 to 2.3 kg. The average sockeye salmon reached lengths of 23-25 cm. Prosopium william soni usually reaches lengths of 25-28 cm.
In addition to fishing, the lake provides habitat for a diversity of bird species. Bird watchers can see from the shore of the lake water birds and typical wetland inhabitants. Among the water birds are usually present Red-necked Grebe, Pacific Diver, Great Northern Diver, Hooded Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Lesser Scaup, glasses duck, American scoter, Common Goldeneye and Barrow's Goldeneye. To that found on the sea birds of prey include red-tailed hawks, osprey and bald eagles. Both ospreys and bald eagles usually stay far into the autumn by the lake and feed on trout and sockeye salmon that spawn in the Lake Creek between Suttle and Blue Lake.
In the forest area surrounding the lake, Flicker, American Robin, Hermit Thrush, Gambelmeise, Junko, Tanager, Nuthatch, Kron Warbler, Chipping Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Red Crossbill, Indian kinglet, ruby kinglet, the Bergklarino ( Myadestes townsendi ) and the Steller are common. The forest is also a habitat for the Western Forest tyrant, the tyrant spruce, the Tannenschnäppertyrann ( Empidonax hammondii ) and scrub - Schnäppertyrann ( Empidonax oberholseri ) and for Sängervireo, Andes Treecreeper, Brown -headed Cowbird and Pine Siskin. Pileated Woodpecker and Hairy Woodpecker in the woods become rare since the lake was infested in the 1990s of the Choristoneura fumiferana Wicklerart.
Suttle Lake and Lake Creek are the habitat for a small population of Neuweltottern. The mixed coniferous forest in the vicinity of the lake is a habitat for numerous mammals, both large and small. Among the large mammals include mule deer, Columbia black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus ), Roosevelt Elk, American Black Bear, Bobcat, and Cougar. Among the small mammals at Suttle Lake are silver badger, beaver, Northern flying squirrels, shrews and voles.
Human use
The Forest Service has begun in the 1920s in order to actively influence the use of the lake, when the first permits were issued. Over the years, the Authority has established three campgrounds and set up two specific systems for day-trippers on the lakeshore. The campsites are located on the south shore of the lake and have different facilities, which facilitate the camper's stay.
Also, a number of log houses was built on Suttle Lake, the first at the beginning of the 1920s. The second was built in 1931 and a third followed in 1941. These three block houses were destroyed by fire. The most recently built log house was repaired in 1974, but before the rebuilt facility was reopened, the building was completely burned down. Today's Lodge at Suttle Lake is located at the eastern end of the lake, just north of the point where the Lake Creek exits the lake. The plant has an area of 930 square kilometers, and the building was designed in the National Park Service Rustic. There are ten guest rooms with a fireplace and views of the forest or the lake. The resort has six cabins, one of which once housed the Guardian of the Forest Service.
The first summer camp at Suttle Lake was established in 1921. In the 1940s, up to 300 people were housed here. To supply the guests, the Pioneer Lodge was built in 1947, at the eastern end of the south of Lake Creek. To the facility included a large dining room, common areas and bedrooms. Twenty cabins were built ebenfgalls. The Wesley Meadow Lodge, created in 1981, and a residence for the Director was added in 1991.
Recovery
In summer, the lake is popular for activities such as swimming, fishing, rowing, canoeing, kayaking and water skiing. There are also trails for hikers, cyclists and horse riders. In the winder months, the paths around the lake are used for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. There is also a network for snowmobiles, and mountain skiing is about ten kilometers west of the lake possible.