List of lakes of Alberta
Most of Alberta's lakes were formed during the last glaciation, about 12,000 years ago. There are many different types of lakes in Alberta, from glacial lakes in the Canadian Rockies to small shallow lakes in the prairies, brown water lakes in the northern boreal forest and muskeg, kettle holes and large lakes with sandy beaches and clear water in the central plains.
This is a list of lakes in Alberta, Canada.
Distribution of the lakes throughout the province of Alberta is irregular, with many water bodies in the wet regions in the northeast and Lakeland County, and very few in the semi-arid Palliser's Triangle in the southeast.[1]
River basins
Most of Alberta's waters are drained in a general north or northeastern direction, with six major rivers forming four major watersheds collecting the water and removing it from the province:[2]
- The Peace River and Athabasca River flow north and east, meeting in the massive Peace–Athabasca Delta, eventually feeding the Mackenzie River in south-central Northwest Territories and draining into the Arctic Ocean
- The North and South Saskatchewan Rivers flow east and form the Saskatchewan River in central Saskatchewan, flowing into Lake Winnipeg, which drains into Hudson Bay on the Arctic/North Atlantic oceans
- The smaller Beaver River in east-central Alberta flows east into the Churchill River in north-central Saskatchewan and then drains into Hudson Bay
- The smaller Milk River in southeast Alberta flows south into the Missouri River in northeastern Montana, which joins the Mississippi River and drains into the Gulf of Mexico
As with other basins on the planet, the topographical highlights in the drainage divides between these basins can be difficult to discern. For example, there is little elevation change in the short 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) of land between Lac la Biche and Beaver Lake, yet the former is in a watershed that drains north into the Arctic Ocean, while the latter is in a watershed that drains east into Hudson Bay.
Largest lakes
Lake Athabasca is the largest lake in both Alberta and Saskatchewan. This 7,850 km2 (3,030 sq mi) lake has 2,295 km2 (886 sq mi) of its surface area in Alberta and 5,555 km2 (2,145 sq mi) in Saskatchewan.
The largest lake completely within Alberta is Lake Claire, at 1,436 km2 (554 sq mi). Lake Claire is just west of Lake Athabasca, with both located in the remote Peace-Athabasca Delta.
This section provides a list of lakes of Alberta with an area larger than 100 km2 (39 sq mi).[1][3][4]
| Lake | Area (including islands) | Altitude | Depth max. | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Athabasca[3] | 7,850 km2 (3,030 sq mi) | 213 m (699 ft) | 124 m (407 ft) | 204 km3 (49 cu mi) |
| Lake Claire[3] | 1,436 km2 (554 sq mi) | 213 m (699 ft) | ||
| Lesser Slave Lake[5][3] | 1,160 km2 (450 sq mi) | 578 m (1,896 ft) | 20.5 m (67 ft) | 13.69 km3 (3.28 cu mi) |
| Bistcho Lake | 426 km2 (164 sq mi) | 552 m (1,811 ft) | 6.7 m (22 ft) | |
| Cold Lake | 373 km2 (144 sq mi) | 535 m (1,755 ft) | 99.1 m (325 ft) | |
| Utikuma Lake | 288 km2 (111 sq mi) | 641 m (2,103 ft) | 5.5 m (18 ft) | |
| Lac la Biche | 234 km2 (90 sq mi) | 21.3 m (70 ft) | ||
| Beaverhill Lake | 139 km2 (54 sq mi) | 2.3 m (7.5 ft) | ||
| Calling Lake | 138 km2 (53 sq mi) | 529 m (1,736 ft) | 18.3 m (60 ft) | |
| Pakowki Lake | 123 km2 (47 sq mi) | 860 m (2,820 ft) | ||
| Winefred Lake | 123 km2 (47 sq mi) | 594 m (1,949 ft) | 15.3 m (50 ft) |
List of lakes
This section provides a list of numerous lakes of Alberta, including the "large" ones shown in the previous section.
Note that the lakes are listed alphabetically by their main name, dropping any leading "lake", "lac", "lac la", "upper/lower", "north/south". For example, Lac la Nonne (the nun lake) is entered under "N". If desired, using the table sort function will give the list sorted by the leading word.
See also
- List of Alberta rivers
- Geography of Alberta
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lakes of Alberta. |
- Crosby, J.M.; Bradford, M.E.; Mitchell, P.A.; Prepas, E.E.; McIntyre, L.G.; Buckland-Nicks, L. Hart; Hanson, J.M. (1990). Atlas of Alberta Lakes. Edmonton: The University of Alberta Press. ISBN 0-88864-214-8. Retrieved 2018-08-07.
- Alberta Environment Archived 2016-04-09 at the Wayback Machine - Alberta's River Basins
- "Principal lakes, elevation and area, by province and territory". Statistics Canada. 2005-02-02. Archived from the original on 2012-09-19. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
- "World Lake Database (Lakes in Canada)". Archived from the original on 2016-03-14. Retrieved 2015-02-21.
- International Lake Environment Committee. "Lesser Slave Lake". Archived from the original on 2007-07-13. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
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