Old Postcard Wednesday--Walker Lake, Hawthorne, Nevada

Judging by images you can view at WalkerLake.org and the Nevada Sierra Club's Walker Lake site the above is an example of a postcard not doing justice to its subject! As a native Nevadan I have appreciated this marvel on a few occasions, but with Lake Tahoe and Pyramid Lake so close to Reno where I grew up there was little inclination to spend time at Walker Lake. It blew my mind back then, and still does, to think that Pyramid Lake and Walker Lake were once a part of the same massive prehistoric lake, pleistocene Lake Lahontan. In the map below that shows the area covered by Lake Lahontan, Pyramid Lake is on the left near Reno. Walker Lake is at the bottom of the map, about 100 miles from Pyramid Lake.

Just look at the extent of that ancient lake's shoreline!

Lake Lahontan was a large endorheic Pleistocene lake of modern northwestern Nevada that extended into northeastern California and southern Oregon. The area of the former lake is a large portion of the Great Basin that borders the Sacramento River watershed to the west.

At its peak approximately 12,700 years ago (during a period known as the "Sehoo Highstand"), the lake had a surface area of over 8,500 square miles (22,000 km2), with its largest component centered at the location of the present Carson Sink. The depth of the lake was approximately 900 feet (270 m) at present day Pyramid Lake, and 500 feet (150 m) at the Black Rock Desert. Lake Lahontan, during this most recent glacial period, would have been one of the largest lakes in North America.

Climate change around the end of the Pleistocene epoch led to a gradual desiccation of ancient Lake Lahontan. The lake had largely disappeared in its extended form by approximately 9,000 years ago. As the surface elevation dropped, the lake broke up into series of smaller lakes, most of which rapidly dried up leaving only a playa. These playas include the Black Rock Desert, the Carson Sink and the Humboldt Sink. The only modern day remnants existing as true lakes are Pyramid Lake and Walker Lake. Winnemucca Lake has been dry since the 1930s and Honey Lake periodically desiccates. The ancient shoreline is evidenced by tufa formations throughout the area. . . [Highlighting added. Continue reading at source: Wikipedia]

You would think... hope ...since Pyramid Lake and Walker Lake are the only true lakes still in existence from ancient Lake Lahontan, that they would be protected beyond measure to ensure their survival. Such is not the case with Walker Lake.

The passionate people behind WalkerLake.org have an excellent video that I urge you to view HERE for more about the crisis situation, while viewing some gorgeous footage of the sparkling gem that they are trying desperately to save. (I would embed here for you but that function is not available.) I was sufficiently stirred to click on the "donate" tab on the page "to support efforts to save Walker Lake as a fresh-water fishery, which is home to threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout and thousands of migratory birds."

From the mission statement of the Walker Lake Working Group at WalkerLake.org:

In America's past, water seemed abundant and nature forgiving. But our water policies did not balance the diversity of human and natural water needs. Intensive economic uses became the dominant forces in managing water. Other concerns - and ecosystems - were ignored.

Caught in the blueprint is Walker Lake. It has much in common with its fellow ancient Lake Lahontan survivor, Pyramid Lake: a high evaporation rate, meager rainfall regime, slightly saline waters and water diversions from its river source.

The task of the Walker Lake Working Group is to change the blueprint - to build public support for developing a long-term solution to protect the lake without jeopardizing the upstream community. The working group seeks to establish a minimum lake level and flows to maintain a stocked fishery. Saving the lake does not require stopping all Walker River water diversions. Only human intervention, primarily through the acquisition of water rights, can save the lake's ecosystem from extinction. . .

The Nevada Chapter of The Sierra Club has a site for Walker Lake, titled
Walker Lake: Nevada's International Treasure that is a great one-page briefing well worth reading for background, insight, and encouragement. Here are portions (highlighting added):

Walker Lake is a familiar sight to travelers on Highway 95 between Reno and Las Vegas.  Its blue desert waters start on the east slopes of the Sierra Nevada in California, flow through farming communities at Bridgeport and Antelope Valley and then through Smith and Mason Valleys in Nevada. From Wabuska, the joined East and West Forks flow through the Walker River Paiute Reservation and then into Walker Lake, just north of Hawthorne, Nevada.  The best-kept secret of Walker Lake is that it is one of only six freshwater terminal lakes in the world.

Walker Lake is famous for its Lahontan cutthroat trout fishery.  Recently, the original strain of lake cutthroats, believed to be extinct, was found surviving in a small creek in northeastern Nevada. These trout which grew to over 40 pounds were re-introduced to Walker Lake in hopes that they will regain their great size. Less well-known is its support of thousands of migratory waterfowl and shorebirds, including biannual visits of up to 1400 common loons. Walker Lake recreational uses are the mainstay of the economy of small rural Mineral County. 

Walker Lake has been seriously impacted by over a century of upriver agricultural diversions. It has lost over three fourths of its volume. The Lake level has fallen by 140 feet. Salt levels have increased to a point which now threaten the survival of the trout fishery and may bring about the collapse of the entire freshwater dependent lake ecosystem. Walker Lake has survived droughts and global climatic changes since the Pleistocene, but its fragile ecosystem cannot outlive upriver diversions accompanied by serious droughts. Walker Lake has no water rights and the River is overappropriated by 140%. Except for a little water from a few creeks and springs on the slopes of Mt. Grant, its only freshwater comes from the river during floods, during high flows when all agricultural rights are satisfied, or at times when Walker River flows cannot be totally diverted. . .

Efforts to secure freshwater for Walker Lake began two decades ago. After the 1980's drought, the State was successful in obtaining the rights to some floodwaters for Walker Lake. . .

Senator Harry Reid's interest in Walker Lake resulted in federal appropriations for Lake and river basin studies, a report by the Office of Technology Assessment, and the initiation of a three-pronged environmental impact analysis by the Bureau of Land Management of acquiring water for Walker Lake, settling Indian claims on additional Walker River water, and recovering Lahontan cutthroat trout in the basin. . .

I suppose you could call this a Good News/Bad News kind of post, to wit: Walker Lake is a beautiful and important place on the Earth that has survived since the Pleistocene era/It may not survive to the mid-21st Century without commitment and action to save it.


Because the situation is indeed dire I am going to end this post with a sorrowful anthem that really touched me, while hoping — believing, really — that it is not too late for Walker Lake. Please help in any way you can if you are stirred to do so.


from youtube introduction: Walker Lake ... has survived for over 13,000 years, 
but now it's dying. Dave Red Boy Schildt wrote a song to give the lake a voice.


Note: I wanted to know more about Dave Red Boy Schildt, and found that he is a bull rider,
cowboy singer, and a poet who just happens to have a blog! It is HERE.

 ~~~

Note: After reading some comments following publication of this post I realize there is an interest in the Native American tribes in the area. Here are two excellent websites:

• The Official Walker River Paiute Tribe Website
• Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Website

 

Walker Lake

Location     Mineral County, Nevada, USA
Coordinates     38°41′32″N 118°44′10″WCoordinates: 38°41′32″N 118°44′10″W
Primary inflows     Walker River
Primary outflows     evaporation
Catchment area     Walker River Basin
Basin countries     United States
Max. length     18 mi (29 km)
Max. width     7 mi (11 km)
Surface area     130 km²
Max. depth     500 ft (150 m)

   Walker Lake satellite view and stats via Wikipedia

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