| Lake Champlain | |
|---|---|
 In 2018 | |
  Lake Champlain | |
| Location | New York/Vermont in theUnited States; andQuebec inCanada |
| Coordinates | 44°32′N73°20′W / 44.53°N 73.33°W /44.53; -73.33 |
| Primary inflows | Otter Creek,Winooski River,Missisquoi River,Poultney River,Lamoille River,Ausable River,Chazy River,Boquet River,Saranac River,La Chute River |
| Primary outflows | Richelieu River |
| Catchment area | 8,234 sq mi (21,326 km2) |
| Basin countries | Canada, United States |
| Max. length | 107 mi (172 km)[1] |
| Max. width | 14 mi (23 km)[1] |
| Surface area | 514 sq mi (1,331 km2) |
| Average depth | 64 ft (10.7 fathoms; 19.5 m) |
| Max. depth | 400 ft (67fathoms; 120 m)[2] |
| Water volume | 6.2 cu mi (25.8 km3) |
| Residence time | 3.3 years |
| Shore length1 | 587 mi (945 km) |
| Surface elevation | 95 to 100 ft (29 to 30 m)[3][4] |
| Islands | 80 (Grand Isle,North Hero,Isle La Motte,see list) |
| Settlements | Burlington, Vermont;Plattsburgh, New York |
| 1 Shore length isnot a well-defined measure. | |
Lake Champlain (/ʃæmˈpleɪn/sham-PLAYN;French:Lac Champlain,pronounced[lakʃɑ̃plɛ̃]ⓘ) is a large naturalfreshwaterlake inNorth America. With a length of 107 mi (172 km) and surface area over 500 sq mi (1,295 km2), it lies mostly between theU.S. states ofNew York andVermont, but also extends north into theCanadian province ofQuebec.[5]
The cities ofBurlington, Vermont, andPlattsburgh, New York, are the largest settlements on the lake, and towards the south lies the historicFort Ticonderoga in New York. The Quebec portion is in theregional county municipalities ofLe Haut-Richelieu andBrome-Missisquoi. There are a number of islands in the lake; the largest includeGrand Isle,Isle La Motte andNorth Hero: all part ofGrand Isle County, Vermont. Because of Lake Champlain's connections both to theSt. Lawrence Seaway via theRichelieu River, and to theHudson River via theChamplain Canal, Lake Champlain is sometimes referred to as "The SixthGreat Lake".[6]
The lake's coastline is relatively undeveloped, and hosts a number of state parks, including ones atNorth Hero andButton Bay in Vermont, andCumberland Bay in New York. Much of New York's shoreline is located within the largerAdirondack Park. The lake is a significant part of local culture, especiallyChamp, alake monster that allegedly resides there.
TheChamplain Valley is the northernmost unit of a landform system known as theGreat Appalachian Valley, which stretches betweenQuebec, Canada, to the north, andAlabama, U.S., to the south. The Champlain Valley is aphysiographic section of the largerSaint Lawrence Valley, which in turn is part of the largerAppalachian physiographic division.[7]
Lake Champlain is one of numerous large lakes scattered in an arc throughLabrador, in Canada, the northern United States, and theNorthwest Territories of Canada.[8]
Lake Champlain covers approximately 514 square miles (1,331 km2), making it the thirteenth-largest lake by area in the U.S. It lies at an elevation of 95 to 100 ft (29 to 30 m), is 107 miles (172 km), has a 587-mile (945 km) shoreline, averages 14 miles (23 km) in width, has an average depth of 64 feet (19.5 m), a maximum depth of 400 feet (121.9 m), and holds some 6.2 cubic miles (25.8 km3) of water.
Lake Champlain is in the Champlain Valley between theGreen Mountains ofVermont and theAdirondack Mountains ofNew York, drained northward by the 106-mile-long (171 km)Richelieu River into theSt. Lawrence River atSorel-Tracy, Quebec, northeast and downstream ofMontreal. The Champlain basin covers 514 square miles (1,331 km2) and collects waters from the northwestern slopes of the Green Mountains and the eastern portion of the Adirondack Mountains, reaching as far south as the 32-mile-long (51 km)Lake George in New York. The lake drains nearly half of Vermont, and approximately 250,000 people get their drinking water from it.[9]
The lake is fed in Vermont by the LaPlatte,Lamoille,Missisquoi,Poultney andWinooski rivers, along with Lewis Creek, Little Otter Creek andOtter Creek.[10] In New York, it is fed by theAusable,Boquet,Great Chazy,La Chute, Little Ausable,Little Chazy, Salmon andSaranac rivers, along with Putnam Creek. In Quebec, it is fed by thePike River. It is connected to theHudson River by theChamplain Canal.
Parts of the lake freeze each winter, and in some winters the entire lake surface freezes, referred to as "closing".[11] In July and August, the lake temperature reaches an average of 70 °F (21 °C).[12][13]
TheChazy Reef is an extensiveOrdoviciancarbonate rockformation that extends fromTennessee toQuebec andNewfoundland. The oldest reefs are around "The Head" of the south end ofIsle La Motte; slightly younger reefs are found at theFisk Quarry, and the youngest (the famous coral reefs) are in fields to the north.[14]
The lake has long acted as a border between indigenous nations, much as it is today between the states ofNew York andVermont. The lake is located at the frontier betweenAbenaki andMohawk (Iroquois Confederacy) traditional territories. The official toponym for the lake, according to the orthography established by the Grand Council of Waban-aki Nation[citation needed], isPitawbagok (alternative orthographies include Petonbowk[15] and Bitawbagok),[16] meaning "middle lake", "lake in between" or "double lake".
TheMohawk language name in modern orthography, as standardized in 1993, isKaniatarakwà:ronte, meaning "a bulged lake" or "lake with a bulge in it".[17][18] An alternate name isKaniá:tare tsi kahnhokà:ronte (phonetic English spellingCaniaderi Guarunte[19]), meaning "door of the country" or "lake to the country". The lake is an important eastern gateway toIroquois Confederacy lands.
The lake was named after theFrenchexplorerSamuel de Champlain, who encountered it in July 1609.[5] While the ports ofBurlington, Vermont,Port Henry, New York, andPlattsburgh, New York, today are primarily used by small craft,ferries and lake cruise ships, they were of substantial commercial and military importance in the 18th and 19th centuries.
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New France allocated concessions all along Lake Champlain toFrench settlers and built forts to defend the waterways. Incolonial times, Lake Champlain was used as a water (or, in winter, ice) passage between theSaint Lawrence andHudson valleys. Travelers found it easier to journey by boats and sledges on the lake rather than go overland on unpaved and frequently mud-bound roads. The lake's northern tip atSaint-Jean-sur-Richelieu,Quebec (known as St. John in colonial times under British rule) is just 25 miles (40 km) fromMontreal, Quebec. The southern tip atWhitehall (Skenesborough in revolutionary times) is 23 miles (37 km) north ofGlens Falls on the Hudson River and 70 miles (110 km) north ofAlbany, New York.
Forts were built atTiconderoga andCrown Point (Fort St. Frederic) to control passage on the lake in colonial times. Important battles were fought at Ticonderoga in 1758 and 1775. During the Revolutionary War, the British and Americans conducted a frenetic shipbuilding race through the spring and summer of 1776, at opposite ends of the lake, and fought a significant naval engagement on October 11 at theBattle of Valcour Island. While it was a tactical defeat for the Americans, and the small fleet led byBenedict Arnold was almost destroyed, the Americans gained a strategic victory; the British invasion was delayed long enough so the approach of winter prevented the fall of these forts until the following year. In this period, theContinental Army gained strength and was victorious atSaratoga.
At the start of theRevolutionary War, British forces occupied theChamplain Valley.[20] However, it did not take long for rebel leaders to realize the importance of controlling Lake Champlain. Early in the war, the colonial militias attempted to expel the British fromBoston; however, this undertaking could not be achieved without heavy artillery.[21] The British forts atTiconderoga andCrown Point, on Lake Champlain, were known to have ample supplies of artillery and were weakly-manned by the British. Thus, the colonial militias devised a plan to take control of the two forts and bring the guns back to the fight in Boston.[21]
The necessity of controlling the two forts at Ticonderoga and Crown Point placed Lake Champlain as a strategic arena during the Revolutionary War. By taking control of these forts, Americans not only gained heavy artillery, but control of a vast water highway as well: Lake Champlain provided a direct invasion route to British Canada. However, had the British controlled the lake, they could have divided the colonies ofNew England and further depleted theContinental Army.
The Continental Army's first offensive action took place in May 1775, three weeks after theBattles of Lexington and Concord.[22]Ethan Allen, accompanied by 200Green Mountain Boys, was ordered to captureFort Ticonderoga and retrieve supplies for the fight in Boston.Benedict Arnold shared the command with Allen, and, in early May 1775, they captured Fort Ticonderoga, Crown Point and the southernLoyalist settlement ofSkenesborough.[22] As a result of Allen's offensive attack on theChamplain Valley in 1775, the American forces controlled the Lake Champlain waterway.
The Continental Army realized the strategic advantage of controlling Lake Champlain, as it leads directly to the heart of Quebec.[23] Immediately after taking Forts Ticonderoga and Crown Point, the Americans began planning an attack on British Canada. The American siege of Quebec was a two-pronged assault and occurred throughout the winter of 1775–1776.[24] Brigadier GeneralRichard Montgomery led the first assault up the Champlain Valley into Canada, while Benedict Arnold led a second army to Quebec via theMaine wilderness.[24]
Despite the strategic advantage of controlling a direct route to Quebec by way of the Champlain Valley, the American siege of British Canada during the winter of 1775 failed. The Continental Army mistakenly assumed that it would receive support from the Canadians upon their arrival at Quebec. This was not the case, and the rebel army struggled to take Quebec with diminishing supplies, support, and harsh northern winter weather.[25]
The Continental Army was forced to camp outside Quebec's walls for the winter, with reinforcements from New York,Pennsylvania,Massachusetts,New Hampshire andConnecticut allowing the soldiers to maintain their siege of the city. However, smallpox descended on both the sieging forces and their reinforcements and savaged the American force.[26] The reinforcements traveled hundreds of miles up the frozen Lake Champlain and St. Lawrence River, but were too late and too few to influence a successful siege of Quebec. In May 1776, with the arrival of a British convoy carrying 10,000 British andHessian troops to Canada, the Continental forces retreated back down the Champlain Valley to reevaluate their strategy.[27]
"I know of no better method than to secure the important posts of Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and by building a number of armed vessels to command the lakes, otherwise the forces now in Canada will be brought down upon us as quick as possible, having nothing to oppose them...They will doubtless try to construct some armed vessels and then endeavor to penetrate the country toward New York." (Brigadier GeneralJohn Sullivan toGeorge Washington, June 24, 1776).[22]
Both British and American forces spent the summer of 1776 building their naval fleets, at opposite ends of Lake Champlain.[26] By the October 1776, the Continental Army had 16 operating naval vessels on Lake Champlain: a great increase to the four small ships they had at the beginning of the summer.[22] GeneralBenedict Arnold commanded the American naval fleet on Lake Champlain, which was composed of volunteers and soldiers drafted from the Northern Army. With great contrast to the Continental navy, experiencedRoyal Navy officers, British seamen and Hessian artillerymen manned the British fleet on Lake Champlain.[22] By the end of the summer of 1776, the opposing armies were prepared to battle over the strategic advantage of controlling Lake Champlain.
On October 11, 1776, the British and American naval fleets met on the western side ofValcour Island, on Lake Champlain.[21] American General Benedict Arnold established the location, as it provided the Continental fleet with a natural defensive position. The British and American vessels engaged in combat for much of the day, only stopping due to impending nightfall.[22]
After a long day of combat, the American fleet was in worse shape than the experienced British Navy. Upon ceasefire, Arnold called a council of war with his fellow officers, proposing to escape the British fleet via rowboats under the cover of night. As the British burned Arnold's flagship, theRoyal Savage, to the east, the Americans rowed past the British lines.[28]
The following morning, the British learned of the Americans' escape and set out after the fleeing Continental vessels. On October 13, the British fleet caught up to the struggling American ships nearSplit Rock Mountain.[28] With no hope of fighting off the powerful British navy, Arnold ordered his men to run their five vessels aground in Ferris Bay,Panton, Vermont. The depleted Continental army escaped on land back toFort Ticonderoga andMount Independence; however, they no longer controlled the Lake Champlain waterway.[28]
The approaching winter of 1776–1777 restricted British movement along the recently controlled Lake Champlain. As the British abandoned Crown Point and returned to Canada for the winter, the Americans reduced their garrisons in the Champlain Valley from 13,000 to 2,500 soldiers.[22]
In early 1777,British GeneralJohn Burgoyne led 8,000 troops from Canada, down Lake Champlain and into the Champlain Valley.[27] The goal of this invasion was to divide theNew England colonies, thus forcing the Continental Army into a separated fight on multiple fronts.[29] Lake Champlain provided Burgoyne with protected passage deep into theAmerican colonies. Burgoyne's army reachedFort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence in late June, 1777. During the night of July 5, the American forces fled Ticonderoga as the British took control of the fort. However, Burgoyne's southern campaign did not go uncontested.
On October 7, 1777, American GeneralHoratio Gates, who occupiedBemis Heights, met Burgoyne's army at the SecondBattle of Freeman's Farm.[29] At Freeman's Farm, Burgoyne's army suffered its final defeat and ended its invasion south into the colonies. Ten days later, on October 17, 1777, British General Burgoyne surrendered his army atSaratoga.[29] This defeat was instrumental to the momentum of the Revolutionary War, as the defeat of the British army along the Champlain-Hudson waterway convincedFrance to ally with the American army.[22]
Following the failed British campaign led by General Burgoyne, the British still maintained control over the Champlain waterway for the duration of the Revolutionary War.[22] The British used the Champlain waterway to supply raids across the Champlain Valley from 1778 to 1780, and Lake Champlain permitted direct transportation of supplies from the British posts at the northern end of the lake.
With the end of the Revolutionary War in 1783, the British naval fleet on Lake Champlain retreated up to St. John's.[22] However, British troops garrisoned at Fort Dutchman's Point (North Hero, Vermont) andFort au Fer (Champlain, New York), on Lake Champlain, did not leave until the 1796Jay Treaty.[30][31]
Eager to take back control of Lake Champlain following the end of the Revolutionary War, Americans flocked to settle theChamplain Valley. Many individuals emigrated fromMassachusetts and other New England colonies, such asSalmon Dutton, a settler ofCavendish, Vermont.[32] Dutton emigrated in 1782 and worked as a surveyor, town official and toll-road owner.His home had a dooryard garden, typical of mid-19th century New England village homes,[32] and his experience settling in the Champlain Valley depicts the industries and lifestyles surrounding Lake Champlain following the Revolutionary War.
Similar to the experience of Salmon Dutton, former colonial militia Major GeneralHezekiah Barnes settled inCharlotte, Vermont, in 1787.[33] Following the war, Barnes worked as a road surveyor; he also established an inn and trading post in Charlotte, along the main trade route from Montreal down Lake Champlain. Barnes' stagecoach inn was built in traditionalGeorgian style, with 10 fireplaces, a ballroom on the interior and a wraparound porch on the outside.[33] In 1800, Continental Army Captain Benjamin Harrington established a distillery business inShelburne, Vermont, which supplied his nearby inn.[34] These individual accounts shed light on the significance of Lake Champlain during the post-Revolutionary War period.
During theWar of 1812, British and American forces faced each other in the Battle of Lake Champlain, also known as theBattle of Plattsburgh, fought on September 11, 1814. This ended the final British invasion of the northern states during the War of 1812. It was fought just prior to the signing of theTreaty of Ghent, and the American victory denied the British any leverage to demand exclusive control over theGreat Lakes or territorial gains against theNew England states.
ThreeUS Naval ships have been named after this battle:USS Lake Champlain (CV-39),USS Lake Champlain (CG-57) and a cargo ship used duringWorld War I.
Following the War of 1812, the U.S. Army began construction on "Fort Blunder": an unnamed fortification built at the northernmost end of Lake Champlain to protect against attacks from British Canada. Its nickname came from a surveying error: the initial phase of construction on the fort turned out to be taking place on a point3⁄4 mi (1.2 km) north of the Canada–U.S. border. Once this error was spotted, construction was abandoned. Locals scavenged materials used in the abandoned fort for use in their homes and public buildings.
By theWebster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842, the Canada–U.S. border was adjusted northward to include the strategically important site of "Fort Blunder" on the US side.[35] In 1844, work was begun to replace the remains of the 1812-era fort with a massive newThird System masonry fortification, known asFort Montgomery. Portions of this fort are still standing.
In the early 19th century, the construction of theChamplain Canal connected Lake Champlain to theHudson River system, allowing north–south commerce by water from New York City to Montreal andAtlantic Canada.
In 1909, 65,000 people celebrated the 300th anniversary of the French discovery of the lake. Attending dignitaries included PresidentWilliam Howard Taft, along with representatives from France, Canada and the United Kingdom.[36][37]
In 1929, then-New York GovernorFranklin Roosevelt and Vermont GovernorJohn Weeks dedicated the first bridge to span the lake, built from Crown Point toChimney Point.[38] This bridge lasted until December 2009. Severe deterioration was found, and the bridge was demolished and replaced with theLake Champlain Bridge, which opened in November 2011.
On February 19, 1932, boats were able to sail on Lake Champlain. It was the first time that the lake was known to be free of ice during the winter at that time.[39]
Lake Champlain briefly became the nation's sixthGreat Lake on March 6, 1998, whenPresident Clinton signed Senate Bill 927. This bill, which was led by U.S. SenatorPatrick Leahy of Vermont and reauthorized theNational Sea Grant Program, contained a line declaring Lake Champlain to be a Great Lake. This status enabled its neighboring states to apply for additional federal research and education funds allocated to these national resources. However, following a small uproar, the Great Lake status was rescinded on March 24 (although New York and Vermont universities continue to receive funds to monitor and study the lake).[40]
In 1609, Samuel de Champlain wrote that he saw alake monster 5 ft (1.5 m) long, as thick as a man's thigh, with silver-gray scales a dagger could not penetrate. Thealleged monster had 2.5 ft (0.76 m) jaws with sharp and dangerous teeth. Native Americans claimed to have seen similar monsters 8 to 10 ft (2.4 to 3.0 m) long. This mysterious creature is likely the original Lake Champlain monster.[41]: 20 The monster has been memorialized in sports teams' names and mascots, e.g., Champ, the mascot of theVermont Lake Monsters, the state's AAAbaseball team.[42] Champ is also commonly known asNessie's American cousin due to similarities between the two cryptids. A Vermont Historical Society publication recounts the story and offers possible explanations for accounts of the so-called monster: "floating logs, schools of large sturgeon diving in a row, or flocks of blackbirds flying close to the water".[43] In 2022, it was reported that a feature dramatic film,Lucy and the Lake Monster, was in the works about a young orphan girl and her grandfather looking for Champ. The film was released in 2024, garnering accolades on the film festival circuit and streaming onAmazon Prime and other outlets.[44][45][46][47][48][49]
A pollution prevention, control and restoration plan for Lake Champlain[50] was first endorsed in October 1996 by the governors of New York and Vermont and the regional administrators of theUnited States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In April 2003, the plan was updated, and Quebec signed on to it. The plan is being implemented by theLake Champlain Basin Program and its partners at the state, provincial, federal and local levels. Renowned as a model for interstate and international cooperation, its primary goals are to reducephosphorus inputs to Lake Champlain, reduce toxic contamination, minimize the risks to humans from water-related health hazards and control the introduction, spread, and impact of non-native nuisance species to preserve the integrity of the Lake Champlain ecosystem.
Senior staff who helped organize theEnvironmental Protection Agency in 1970 recall thatInternational Paper was one of the first companies to call upon the brand-new agency, because it was being pressured by both New York and Vermont with regard to a discharge of pollution into Lake Champlain.[51][52]
Agricultural and urbanrunoff from the watershed ordrainage basin is the primary source of excess phosphorus, which exacerbatesalgae blooms in Lake Champlain. The most problematic blooms have beencyanobacteria, commonly called blue-green algae, in the northeastern part of the lake: primarilyMissisquoi Bay.[53]
To reduce phosphorus runoff to this part of the lake, Vermont and Quebec agreed to reduce their inputs by 60% and 40%, respectively, by an agreement signed in 2002.[54] While agricultural sources (manure and fertilizers) are the primary sources of phosphorus (about 70%) in the Missisquoi basin, runoff from developed land and suburbs is estimated to contribute about 46% of the phosphorus runoff basin-wide to Lake Champlain, and agricultural lands contributed about 38%.[55]
In 2002, the cleanup plan noted that the lake had the capacity to absorb 120 short tons (110 t) of phosphorus each year. In 2009, a judge noted that 240 short tons (218 t) were still flowing in annually: more than twice what the lake could handle. Sixty municipal and industrial sewage plants discharge processed waste from the Vermont side.[56]
In 2008, the EPA expressed concerns to the State of Vermont that the lake's cleanup was not progressing fast enough to meet the original cleanup goal of 2016.[57] The state, however, cites its Clean and Clear Action Plan[58] as a model that will produce positive results for Lake Champlain.
In 2007, Vermont banned phosphates for dishwasher use starting in 2010. This will prevent an estimated 2–3 short tons (1.8–2.7 t) from flowing into the lake. While this represents 0.6% of the phosphate pollution, it took US$1.9 million to remove the pollutant from treated wastewater: an EPA requirement.[59]
Despite concerns about pollution, Lake Champlain is safe for swimming, fishing and boating. It is considered a world-class fishery forsalmonidae species (lake trout andAtlantic salmon) and bass. About 81 fish species live in the lake, and more than 300 bird species rely on it for habitat and as a resource during migrations.[60]
By 2008, at least seven institutions were monitoring lake water health:
In 2001, scientists estimated that farming contributed 38% of the phosphorus runoff. By 2010, results of environmentally-conscious farming practices, enforced by law, had made a positive contribution to lake cleanliness. A federally-funded study was started to analyze this problem and to arrive at a solution.[62]
Biologists have been trying to controllampreys in the lake since 1985 or earlier. Lampreys are native to the area, but have expanded in population to such an extent that they wounded nearly all lake trout in 2006, and 70–80% of salmon. The use of pesticides against the lamprey has reduced their damage to other fish to 35% of salmon and 31% of lake trout. The goal was 15% of salmon and 25% of lake trout.[63]
The federal and state governments originally budgeted US$18 million for lake programs for 2010. This was later supplemented by an additional US$6.5 million from the federal government.[64]
In 2010, the estimate ofcormorant population, now classified as a nuisance species because they take so much of the lake fish, ranged from 14,000 to 16,000. A Fish and Wildlife commissioner said that the ideal population would be about 3,300, amounting to 7.8/sq mi (3/km2). Cormorants had disappeared from the lake (and all northern lakes) due to the use ofDDT in the 1940s and 1950s, which made their eggs more fragile and reduced breeding populations.[65]
Ring-billed gulls are also considered a nuisance, and measures have been taken to reduce their population. Authorities are trying to encourage the return ofblack-crowned night herons,cattle egrets andgreat blue herons, which disappeared during the timeDDT was being widely used.[65]
In 1989,UNESCO designated the area around Lake Champlain as theChamplain-Adirondack Biosphere Reserve.[66][67]
The Alburgh Peninsula (also known as the Alburgh Tongue), extending south from the Quebec shore of the lake into Vermont, andProvince Point, the southernmost tip of a small promontory approximately 2 acres (1 ha) in size[68] a few miles to the northeast of the community ofEast Alburgh, Vermont, are connected by land to the rest of the state only via Canada. This is a distinction shared with the state ofAlaska,Point Roberts, Washington, and theNorthwest Angle inMinnesota. All of these are practicalexclaves of the United States contiguous with Canada. Unlike the other cases, highway bridges across the lake provide direct access to the Alburgh peninsula from within the United States (from three directions), but Province Point is still accessible by land only through Canada.
Three roadways cross the lake, two connecting New York and Vermont and one connecting two towns in New York:
North of Ticonderoga, New York, the lake widens appreciably; ferry service is operated by theLake Champlain Transportation Company at:
While the old bridge was being demolished and the new one constructed, Lake Champlain Transportation Company operated a free, 24-hour ferry from just south of the bridge to Chimney Point, Vermont, at the expense of the states of New York and Vermont, at a cost to the states of about $10 per car.[72][73]
The most southerly crossing is theFort Ticonderoga Ferry, connecting Ticonderoga, New York, withShoreham, Vermont, just north of the historic fort.
Four significant railroad crossings were built over the lake. As of 2021, only one remains.
Lake Champlain has been connected to theErie Canal via theChamplain Canal since the canal's official opening on September 9, 1823, the same day as the opening of the Erie Canal fromRochester onLake Ontario toAlbany. It connects to theSt. Lawrence River via theRichelieu River, with theChambly Canal bypassing rapids on the river since 1843. Together with these waterways, the lake is part of theLakes to Locks Passage. TheLake Champlain Seaway, a project to use the lake to bring ocean-going ships from New York City to Montreal, was proposed in the late 19th century and considered as late as the 1960s, but rejected for various reasons. The lake is also part of the 740-mile (1,190 km)Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which begins inOld Forge, New York, and ends inFort Kent, Maine.
Burlington, Vermont (pop. 44,743, 2020 census) is the largest city on the lake. The second and third most-populated cities/towns arePlattsburgh, New York, andSouth Burlington, Vermont, respectively. The fourth-largest community is the town ofColchester.
Lake Champlain contains roughly 80 islands, three of which comprise four entire Vermont towns (most ofGrand Isle County). The largest islands:
All active navigational aids on the American portion of the lake are maintained byCoast Guard Station Burlington, along with those on internationalLake Memphremagog to the east.[84]Aids to navigation on the Canadian portion of the lake are maintained by theCanadian Coast Guard.[85]
There are a number of parks in the Lake Champlain region, in both New York and Vermont.
Those on the New York side of the lake includePoint Au Roche State Park, which park grounds have hiking and cross country skiing trails and a public beach; and Ausable Point Campground within theAdirondack Park.Cumberland Bay State Park is located onCumberland Head, with a campground, city beach and sports fields.
There are various parks along the lake on the Vermont side, includingSand Bar State Park inMilton, featuring a 2,000 ft (610 m) natural sand beach, swimming, canoe and kayak rentals, food concession, picnic grounds and a play area. At 226 acres (91 ha),Grand Isle State Park contains camping facilities, a sand volleyball court, a nature walk trail, ahorseshoe pit and a play area.Button Bay State Park inFerrisburgh features campsites, picnic areas, a nature center and a swimming pool. Burlington's Waterfront Park is a revitalized industrial area.
Coast Guard Station Burlington provides "Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement and Ice Rescue services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year".[84] Services are also provided by local, state and federal governments bordering on the lake, including theU.S. Border Patrol,Royal Canadian Mounted Police,Vermont State Police,[86]New York State Police Marine Detail,[87] and Vermont Fish and Wildlife wardens.[88]
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