Devils Lake, North Dakota 8/25/2010

After our over night stay at Wal-Mart in the city of Devils Lake, we went to the visitors center, which just happened to be located next to Wal-Mart. They gave us some information and maps, on Devils Lake. We unhooked the Honda for a short drive around the lake.

Devils Lake has flucuated in size many times in the last 2,000 years.

When the lake rises above 1,447 feet, it crosses over into the neighboring  Stump Lake. When it reaches 1,458 feet both lakes spill into the Sheyenne River, that flows into the Red River, then to Canada, to the Hudson Bay. This has not happened for over a 1000 years. Currently protective dikes are built to 1,454 feet.

From 1993 to 1999, precipitation caused Devils Lake to double in size. I also read in another article that Devils lake has quadrupled since 1993. 

Devils Lake is a closed lake, with no outlet. When it floods, the water spills over into surrounding farmland.

We continued to drive around Devils Lake, where the road moved away from the lake. Devils Lake is the largest natural body of water in North Dakota. It is the 2nd largest body of water after the artificial Lake Sakakawea, in North Dakota.

Devils Lake has risen 30 feet in the past two decades to 1452.1 ft. last summer. Construction is now underway to raise and extend the existing embankments protecting the city of Devils Lake. The work will provide an additional 6 feet of protection, rising from an elevation of 1,460 feet to 1,466 feet. The population of the city of Devils Lake is over 7,200.

$450 million (one article said 1 billion) has been spent by the state of  North Dakota and the government, for the flooding of  70,000 acres of farmland. The money has gone for new roads,dikes,new railroad routes,utility poles, and displacing of over 300 homes.

The flooding and diverting of Devils Lake has been a financial, environmental, international treaty, water quality control, and legal issue for years. The outlet drew opposition from the governments of Minnesota and Manitoba. They argue the outlet would create the potential for the transfer of unknown foreign aquatic species and high levels of sulfates into the Red River basin and Lake Winnipeg, the world's 10th-largest freshwater lake. Devils Lake citizens and north Dakota are also concerned because, due to the rising waters of the Devils Lake and its basin, streams can flow in two directions: into the Red River Valley or the Devils Lake Basin. The Red River Valley basin contains a "rough fish", the common carp, which the North Dakota Game and Fish Department fears will enter Devils Lake basin waters in the near future, allowing the carp to populate Devils Lake. The carp's fast reproductive growth and the lack of carp predators in the lake will likely help it to dramatically increase in population. This could have drastic consequences for existing populations of game fish such as the walleye and northern pike, which could greatly harm the sport fishing industry.

Half way around the lake we came to a spot where the road ran between two bodies of water. I got out to check out the water. It was pretty green here. I have read that the lake has a lot of nutrient in it, which is good for fish. Devils Lake has walleye, northern pike, white bass, and is known as the perch Capital of the world.

Blue Bill Point

Devils Lake has been called, " a slow moving monster," that has destroyed 2 small towns, and could flood a couple towns down river, if it overflows to the Red River.

After our tour of Devils Lake, we hooked up the Honda to our Nest , and headed out of town.

This is a sign that I saw after being on the road for a while. Yes, I agree, we all need to be grateful for what God has blessed us with, no matter what the circumstances. It could be much worse.
We drove to Grand Forks, North Dakota on the border of North Dakota and Minnesota and stayed at Wal-Mart once again. What would we do with out Wal-Marts!