Green Lake

Green Lake may refer to:

Green Lake (New York)

Green Lake is the larger of the two lakes in Green Lakes State Park, which lies about 9 miles (14 km) east of downtown Syracuse in Onondaga County, New York. Round Lake is the smaller lake located west of Green Lake. Both lakes are meromictic, which means that there is no seasonal mixing of surface and bottom waters. Meromictic lakes are fairly rare; they have been extensively studied, in part because their sediments can preserve an historical record extending back thousands of years, and because of the euxinic (anoxic, sulfidic) conditions which can form in the deep water.

Description

Green Lake reaches a maximum depth of 195 feet. Deep lakes tend to appear bluish because the wavelengths of light that can penetrate (and be dispersed at) great depths are those closer to the blue end of the spectrum. Because of its depth and the high salinity of the basin waters, the lake is Meromictic and does not turn over and intermix waters like many other lakes in this region do. Green Lake's cold and dense bottom waters tend to stay separate from the shallower, warmer waters. Because of this, sediment sinks and collects in the bottom and virtually does not decay. Since the sediment is not kicked up by mixing, the lake does not take on a muddy, turbid appearance like other lakes do. Meromictic lakes also have still, mirror-like waters. Green Lake is no exception here, as its tranquil, reflective water makes for great photography. The Lake resides in an ancient river basin, carved deeper into the limestone bedrock by the last ice age. Limestone, an easily dissolved sedimentary rock, saturates the Lake's waters with calcium carbonate, a bluish salt solution. The lake, which resembles a large river in shape, is unusually deep for its size and was regarded as being sacred by the native Onondaga tribe, which originally settled in the area.

Green Lake (Whistler)

Green Lake is the largest and most northerly lake in the Resort Municipality of Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. It is the source of the Green River, a tributary of the Lillooet River, and is fed by the River of Golden Dreams, which issues from Alta Lake, which is at the height of land dividing the Green River drainage from that of the Cheakamus River to the south, which is a tributary of the Squamish River. Also feeding Green Lake are Fitzsimmons Creek, which originates in the valley above Whistler Village between Blackcomb and Whistler Mountains, and Rainbow Creek, which descends from Rainbow Mountain via the Alpine Meadows subdivision. A former minor ski hill, Rainbow , is located midway between Alpine Meadows and Emerald Estates near the lake's western extremity.

The Whistler neighbourhoods of Alpine Meadows and Emerald Estates are located on the lake's southwestern and northwestern shores, respectively. The ghost town of Parkhurst (aka Green River, though that is a rail stop at the outlet of Green Lake about 1 km north), is known locally but incorrectly as Soo Valley. (The Soo Valley, while nearby, is in a different drainage). Parkhurst grew up around a lumber mill on a point on the east shore of the lake at its narrowest point, opposite Emerald Estates; the porch of the old main building was the location of a locally famous group nude photo by squatter residents of the area in the 1970s, many of whom now figure in the Whistler establishment.