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Scenic Photography of the North Cascades
Scenic Photography of the North Cascades
Lakes
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A lake can generally be defined as a body of water surrounded entirely by land. My interest in high lakes initially involved fishing but has since evolved into a general interest in the rugged country of the mountains. I use a loose definition of lake in working on my Skagit high lake project. If something is represented as an open body of water on a USGS 7.5 minute quad, it is on my list to visit. Many of the smaller of these water bodies could be variously described as ponds, tarns, or wetlands.
Lakes can be formed by a number of processes. Some lakes are formed when landslides dam a stream channel. Other lakes are dammed by the terminal moraines of retreating glaciers or occupy deep trenches carved into bedrock by glaciers. Some lakes occupy low spots left in the landscape by extinct volcano craters and cinder cones.
Most of the lakes in the North Cascades were naturally free of fish due to fish migration barriers in the valleys below them. Many are now periodically stocked or have self-sustaining fish populations that are reproducing on their own after having been stocked 60 to 70 years ago.
These lakes are also home to a number of aquatic invertebrates including insects, snails, and crustaceans as well as vertebrate amphibians. Lately there has been some concern about how fish introductions may change the ecology of lakes where fish do not naturally occur.
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