Kootenay Lake

Kootenay Lake is a lake located in British Columbia, Canada and is part of the Kootenay River. The lake has been raised by the Corra Linn Dam and has a dike system at the southern end, which, along with industry in the 1950s-70s, has changed the ecosystem in and around the water. Kootenay Lake has a year-round toll-free ferry that crosses between Kootenay Bay and Balfour, and is a popular summer tourist destination.

Geography

Kootenay Lake is a long, narrow and deep fjord-like lake located between the Selkirk and Purcell mountain ranges in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. It is one of the largest lakes in British Columbia, at 104 km in length and 3–5 km in width. It is, in part, a widening of the Kootenay River, which in turn drains into the Columbia River system at Castlegar, British Columbia.

Although oriented primarily in a north-south configuration, a western arm positioned roughly halfway up the length of the lake stretches 35 km to the City of Nelson. The lake is 532m above sea level, with the adjacent mountains rising up to a maximum of approximately 2700m. The average residence for water in the lake is 1.5 years, although the west arm has a much faster rate of water replacement; about 3–4 days.