| Vaseux Lake | |
|---|---|
 Looking across Vaseux Lake towards McIntyre Bluff | |
| Location | Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada |
| Coordinates | 49°17′30″N119°32′00″W / 49.29167°N 119.53333°W |
| Length | 3.8 km (2.4 mi) |
| Width | 0.8 km (0.50 mi) |
| Elevation | 357 m (1,171 ft) |
| Designation | Migratory Bird Sanctuary |
| Established | 1923 [1] |
| Governing body | Canadian Wildlife Service |
Vaseux Lake is a shallow freshwater lake located along the course of the Okanagan River in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. [2]
The name " vaseux " is French, meaning muddy or murky, which is descriptive of the lake's silty water. The lake was likely named by French Canadian fur traders.
The lake was misspelled as Vasuix Lake on Joseph Trutch's maps from 1866 and 1871. For many years the name was later spelled Vaseaux Lake; in 1945 the Geographic Board of BC corrected the official name to its present form. [2]
The town of Okanagan Falls is to the north, and the town of Oliver is to the south. The lake lies to the east of Mount Keogan, while British Columbia Highway 97 runs alongside the east shore of the lake, and has a sharp hairpin turn at the Vaseaux Lake Rock Cut which has been the scene of many accidents and deaths. McIntyre Bluff, Vaseux Creek and the associated alluvial fan are to the south; however, it does not flow into Vaseux Lake. Both the north and south ends of the lake are shallow; there is an oval-shaped depression in the center where the lake reaches its maximum depth. The largest island on the lake is Hatfield Island. The lake stage is controlled by McIntyre Dam. [3]
Vaseaux Lake features a variety of wetland and foreshore habitats that support large populations of migratory bird species along the inland portion of the Pacific Flyway. Bird species of note include trumpeter swan, great blue heron, western screech-owl, yellow-breasted chat, and the red-listed Lewis's woodpecker. [4] It is for these reasons that the Canadian Wildlife Service designated the lake and its foreshore a Migratory Bird Sanctuary in 1923. [1]
The semi-arid grasslands and forests surrounding the lake are also of ecological importance, and are protected within several different national and provincial protected areas. In 1956, the provincial government established Vaseux Lake Provincial Park at the northeastern end of the lake to providing space for recreation while also ensuring the ecological integrity of the lake's foreshore in this area is preserved. [5]
In 1979, the Canadian Wildlife Service established Vaseux-Bighorn National Wildlife Area to protect winter rangeland for California Bighorn Sheep. [6] The provincial government added on to this nature preserve by establishing Vaseux Protected Area in 2001. [7]
Protected areas of Canada consist of approximately 12.1 percent of the nation's landmass and freshwater are considered conservation areas, including 11.4 percent designated as protected areas. Approximately 13.8 percent of Canada's territorial waters are conserved, including 8.9 percent designated as protected areas. Terrestrial areas conserved have increased by 65 percent in the 21st century, while marine areas conserved have increased by more than 3,800 percent.
Cathedral Provincial Park and Protected Area, usually known as Cathedral Provincial Park and also as Cathedral Park, is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is located east of E.C. Manning Provincial Park, south of BC Highway 3, and southeast of the town of Princeton, and southwest of Keremeos. Its southern boundary is the border with the United States. Much of the park is the basin of the Ashnola River. Cathedral Park is home to teal sub-alpine lakes, vast ridges and jarred peaks, old-growth forests, and rock formations of siltstone, granodiorite, and basalt. Hikers can scramble along various peaks such as the 8000-foot Grimface Mountain and Lakeview Mountain. Tourists flock to Smokey the Bear and Stone City because of their unique formations with incredible views formed by millennia of erosion, volcanic and tectonic activity, and glacial recession.
Vaseux Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park located along the northeastern shore of Vaseux Lake in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada. The park is situated 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of Okanagan Falls on Highway 97 in the south Okanagan. The park plays a key role in educating and providing access to important conservation values and has a responsibility to maintain these activities.
Chasm Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located near the town of Clinton. Expanded to 3,067 hectares in 1995, the park was originally created in 1940 to preserve and promote a feature known as the Painted Chasm, or simply The Chasm, a gorge created from melting glacial waters eroding a lava plateau over a 10 million year span called the Chilcotin Group.
Khutzeeymateen Provincial Park, also known as Khutzeymateen/K'tzim-A-Deen Grizzly Sanctuary, is a Class A provincial park located in the North Coast region of British Columbia, Canada. The park, within the purview of BC Parks, was established on August 15, 1994, to protect critical habitat for the region's grizzly bear population and the largest contiguous stand of old-growth Sitka spruce in the world. It was officially opened by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, on August 17, 1994.
Okanagan Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. Established in 1955, the park covers a total area of 98 hectares.
Seton Portage Historic Provincial Park is a historic provincial park located in the community of Seton Portage, British Columbia, Canada. It was established on March 29, 1972 to commemorate the location of the first railway in the province of British Columbia.
Syringa Park is a provincial park on the east shore of Lower Arrow Lake in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia. At the foot of the Norns Range, Tulip Creek passes through the centre, and Syringa Creek is closer to the southeastern boundary. The park is about 19 kilometres (12 mi) west of Castlegar via Broadwater Rd.
Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park is a provincial park covering parts of the eastern Kitimat Ranges, northern Pacific Ranges, and the Rainbow Range in British Columbia, Canada. It was established on May 21, 1938 in the western interior of the province, to protect its important natural features. The park hosts a variety of recreation activities for visitors. This park encompasses a range of diverse species in this park including bears, moose, and various fish. There are also a few at risk species in this park.
Lac du Bois Grasslands Protected Area is a protected area located north of Kamloops in British Columbia, Canada. The protected area was established by BC Parks on 30 April 1996 to protect a unique mixed forest-grassland ecosystem overlooking the North and South forks of the Thompson River.
South Chilcotin Mountains Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on Highway 40 northwest of Lillooet, British Columbia. The park, which is 56,796 ha. in size, was established on April 18, 2001, and It was created out of a portion of the Spruce Lake Protected Area. The park is located on three Indigenous Nations: The Tsilhqot’in, St’at’imc, and Secwepemc.
Vaseux Protected Area is a provincial park in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada. It was established on April 18, 2001 to protect the habitats of a number of blue-listed and red-listed species, most notably the winter rangeland for California Bighorn Sheep. The protected area adds to the similarly sized Vaseux-Bighorn National Wildlife Area that was established by the Canadian Wildlife Service in 1979.
Vaseux-Bighorn National Wildlife Area is a National Wildlife Area in British Columbia, Canada, primarily set aside to protect winter rangeland for California bighorn sheep. In 1979, the Vaseux-Bighorn Wildlife Area was established in response to substantial reduction in wild animal populations in the area. Identified factors contributing to species decline at the time were high predator population, overharvesting of species, and illegal hunting. Land development, cattle raising, and lumbering also might have altered species populations. Under these conditions, the area was able to be classified as a Category IV area by the IUCN and is now used for wildlife habitat and conservation. Even with minimal anthropogenic use of the area, threats persist through invasive species. Recreational use is limited spatially and is only open to the public during the day.
The Central British Columbia Mountain forests is a temperate coniferous forest ecoregion in north-central British Columbia, as defined by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) categorization system.
South Okanagan—Similkameen National Park Reserve is a proposed national park reserve located in the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen of British Columbia. The goal of the park is to work with the local First Nations to protect a large patch of Okanagan dry forests and part of the northern reach of the Columbia Plateau ecoregion in Canada.
White Lake Grasslands Protected Area is a conservation site located in the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen of British Columbia, Canada. It was established on April 18, 2001 by order-in-council under the Environment and Land Use Act to protect the semi-arid grassland and pine forest ecosystem west of Vaseux Lake. The region spans from shoreline to mountain top, providing essential living areas for various red and blue-listed species, plants, and plant groups in British Columbia.
Gladys Lake Ecological Reserve is an ecological reserve located in the Eaglenest Range of the Spatsizi Plateau in north-central British Columbia, Canada. It was established in 1975 under the Ecological Reserves Act to facilitate scientific research of the region's alpine-subalpine ecosystems while discouraging outdoor recreation use. The reserve protects 44,098 hectares of pristine wilderness and is the largest ecological reserve in British Columbia.
Duu Guusd Heritage Site/Conservancy is a heritage site and conservancy located in the northwest corner of Graham Island in the Haida Gwaii archipelago of British Columbia, Canada. It was established on March 23, 2008 to protect the ecological integrity and cultural importance of the region. The conservancy is part of an archipelago-wide system of protected areas that includes Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, Gwaii Haanas National Marine Conservation Area Reserve and Haida Heritage Site, and 17 other provincially protected areas.
Media related to Vaseux Lake at Wikimedia CommonsMunicipalities and communities of Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada | ||
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent region | |
 | This article about a location in the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen, Canada is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
