McDougall Lake

McDougall Lake
McDougall Lake
Location	British Columbia
Coordinates	52°13′N119°55′W / 52.22°N 119.91°W / 52.22; -119.91
Primary inflows	File Creek
Primary outflows	File Creek
Basin  countries	Canada
Max. length	6.7 km (4.2 mi)
Max. width	1.2 km (0.75 mi)
Surface area	5.83 km2 (2.25 sq mi)
Average depth	40.5 m (133 ft)
Max. depth	72 m (236 ft)
Water volume	0.236 km3 (0.057 cu mi)
Shore length1	15.5 km (9.6 mi)
Surface elevation	1,152 m (3,780 ft)
Islands	none
Settlements	none
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

McDougall Lake is a lake in Wells Gray Provincial Park in east-central British Columbia, Canada. It drains through File Creek into Murtle Lake. ^[1]

Naming

McDougall Lake and McDougall Falls on the Murtle River were named for Pete McDougal who homesteaded in the Clearwater River Valley from 1913 to 1936. The different spelling of these names has evolved over the years. ^{[2] [3] : 168}

Access

There is no road or trail to McDougall Lake. Some maps show a trail from Murtle Lake up File Creek, but it has been impassable since the 1980s. The Kostal Lake trail from Clearwater Lake was permanently closed by B.C. Parks in 2013. Float planes and helicopters are allowed to land at McDougall Lake with a permit from B.C. Parks. ^[2]

Canoes and kayaks can be portaged from Murtle Lake around some outlet rapids on File Creek, then one can paddle 4 km (2.5 mi) upstream. The creek is impassable at a log jam, and a flagged route starts here. The hike to McDougall Lake is 6 km (3.7 mi) and takes about 3 hours cross-country over the lava flows from Kostal Volcano. ^[2]

See also

• List of lakes of British Columbia

References

1. "McDougall Lake". BC Geographical Names .
2. Neave, Roland (2023). Exploring Wells Gray Park, 7th edition. Wells Gray Tours, Kamloops, BC. ISBN   978-0-9681932-3-5.
3. Akrigg, G.P.V.; Akrigg, Helen B. (1986), British Columbia Place Names (3rd, 1997 ed.), Vancouver: UBC Press, ISBN   0-7748-0636-2