Devil's Lake (Wisconsin)
| Devil's Lake | |
|---|---|
| Location | Sauk County, Wisconsin, USA |
| Coordinates | 43°25′05″N 89°43′55″W / 43.41806°N 89.73194°W |
| Type | endorheic lake |
| Basin countries | United States |
Devil's Lake is an endorheic (closed drainage) lake in the South Range of the Baraboo Hills, about two miles south of Baraboo, Wisconsin, in Sauk County, Wisconsin, USA. The lake is one of the primary attractions of the eponymous Devil's Lake State Park.
Devil's Lake is the site of annual Ho-Chunk Nation celebrations which have been conducted for many generations. The Ho-Chunk gave Devil's Lake its name because it was said that the voices of spirits were often heard during the celebrations. Their name, however, was “Da-wa-kah-char-gra” meaning “Spirit Lake.”
It is also a popular recreation destination for watercraft, fishing, hiking, and climbing.
History
Devil's Lake was originally a gorge of the Wisconsin River prior to the last ice age. At what is now the southern end of the lake, the river turned from a southerly direction to an easterly direction. During the ice age, a lobe of the glacier passed to the east of the Baraboo Hills and came up the river valley. It deposited materials and then melted, leaving a terminal moraine blocking the river, forming an earthen dam. [1] Another moraine was deposited at the north end of the lake. The river eventually found a new course to the east of the Baraboo Hills, where the glacier had been, leaving a portion of the river gorge between the moraines filled with water. This body of water is Devil's Lake.
References
- Lange, Kenneth I. (1989), Ancient Rocks and Vanished Glaciers: A Natural History of Devil's Lake State Park, Wisconsin; Stevens Point, Wisconsin: Worzalla Publishing Company.