Lake Lenore (Washington)

Lake Lenore, also known as Lenore Lake, is located in Grant County, Washington, United States. It is a 1,670-acre (680 ha) lake formed by the Missoula Floods in the lower Coulee just north of the town of Soap Lake, Washington. It is situated between Alkali Lake to the north and Soap Lake to the south. The lake is rather narrow, but long. The length of the lake runs north–south alongside State Route 17 leading from near the city of Soap Lake to Coulee City. The lake also consists of more than 7 islands.

Lenore Lake
State Route 17 along Lake Lenore
Lenore Lake Show map of Washington (state) Lenore Lake Show map of the United States
Location	Grant County, Washington
Coordinates	47°30′07″N 119°30′43″W
Catchment area	367 sq mi (950 km2)
Basin countries	United States
Max. length	8 mi (13 km)
Average depth	15 ft (4.6 m)
Max. depth	27 ft (8.2 m)
Water volume	19,500 acre⋅ft (24,100,000 m3)
Shore length1	14.4 mi (23.2 km)
Surface elevation	1,075 ft (328 m)
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Lenore Canyon is a coulee associated with the development of the Scablands.^[1]

One of the interesting areas around Lake Lenore is the Lenore Caves. Located at the northern end of the lake, the Lenore Caves are a series of overhangs along the cliffs at the lake. They exist in one of the largest volcanic regions on Earth.

Lenore Caves

Main article: Lake Lenore Caves State Park

The Lenore Caves were formed by the plucking of basalt from the walls of the coulees by the Missoula floods and are geologically different from most caverns. They were later used as shelters by early Native Americans.

The trail is accessible from State Route 17 along Lake Lenore via a road to a parking area.

History

On January 13, 1947, the U.S. War Assets Administration disposed of drums of sodium into Lake Lenore.^[2]