| Cold Lake | |
|---|---|
 Kinosoo Beach on the edge of Cold Lake | |
  Cold Lake Location in Alberta Show map of Alberta Cold Lake Cold Lake (Canada) Show map of Canada | |
| Location | Bonnyville No. 87,Alberta /Beaver River No. 622,Saskatchewan |
| Coordinates | 54°33′N110°03′W / 54.550°N 110.050°W /54.550; -110.050 |
| Type | Mesotrophic |
| Part of | Churchill River drainage basin |
| Primary inflows | |
| Primary outflows | Cold River |
| Catchment area | 6,140 km2 (2,370 sq mi)[1] |
| Basin countries | Canada |
| Surface area | 373 km2 (144 sq mi)[1] |
| Average depth | 49.9 m (164 ft)[1] |
| Max. depth | 99.1 m (325 ft)[1] |
| Shore length1 | 142.14 km (88.32 mi)[2] |
| Surface elevation | 535 m (1,755 ft)[1] |
| Islands |
|
| Settlements | City of Cold Lake |
| 1 Shore length isnot a well-defined measure. | |
Cold Lake[3] is a large lake inNorthern Alberta andSaskatchewan, Canada. Most of the lake is within Alberta. It is one of the deepest lakes in Alberta with a maximum depth of 99.1 metres (325 ft). It has around 24 known species of fish and is a major ice fishing lake. Cold Lake is also major stop for many migrating birds, and is home to one of the largestwarbler populations in Alberta.[1] The city ofCold Lake is the largest community on the lake.
Cold Lake has a total surface area of 373 square kilometres (144 sq mi), 248 square kilometres (96 sq mi) of which is in Alberta. Except for the western shore, the lake is surrounded by protected areas such as theCold Lake Provincial Park in Alberta and theMeadow Lake Provincial Park in Saskatchewan.
The city of Cold Lake is located on the south-western shore while theCold Lake 149A andBIndian reserves of theCold Lake First Nations are on the western and southern shores respectively. Cold Lake House was a trading post built by the Montreal traders in 1781 near present-dayBeaver Crossing, Alberta, south of Cold Lake.
TheMartineau River flows fromPrimrose Lake into Cold Lake, which in turn discharges through theCold River. The Cold River travels through a series of lakes inMeadow Lake Provincial Park[4] and ends as it empties intoLac des Îles. TheWaterhen River, which is a major tributary ofBeaver River, is the primary outflow for Lac des Îles and it continues east where it meetsBeaver River, a major tributary of theChurchill River.
The lake has a native legend of a large lake monster, the "kinosoo", with many residents claiming to have evidence or have seen it.[citation needed]
Cold Lake preserves an extensivefossil and subfossil record from the latest part of theLate Pleistocene, after theLast Glacial Maximum, to theLate Holocene. By theMiddle Holocene, the mammalian fauna that lived in the region was in essence a modern one.[5]
Fish species includewalleye,sauger,yellow perch,northern pike,lake trout,lake whitefish,cisco,burbot,white sucker, andlongnose sucker. Both Alberta and Saskatchewan angling licences are valid on the entire lake.[6][7][8]
Media related toCold Lake (Alberta) at Wikimedia Commons
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