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Lake Wilderness
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Welcome
Wilderness
Yellow
Watershed Area
328 acres
Lake surface area
67 acres
Maximum depth
38 feet
Mean depth
21 feet
Public Park
Yes
Boat Ramp
Yes, no gas engines
Fish Present
bass, stocked rainbow
Volunteer monitoring began at Lake Wilderness in the early 1980s and has continued through 2008. The data indicate this city lake (Maple Valley) is nearly color-free and moderate in primary productivity (mesotrophic) with good water quality. Productivity has decreased slowly over time, with the trend line having fair correlation.
Profile data show thermal stratification is constant through summer, and sedimentary phosphorus release adds significantly to deep water concentrations. Nitrogen to phosphorus ratios in the upper water drop below 20:1 in late summer, which may favor bluegreens over other algal species from then until winter.
Lake Wilderness has a public access park with a beach and a trailered boat launch. There is a history of Eurasian milfoil infestation with control activities by the community and the city of Maple Valley. Residents should watch for new patches of Eurasian milfoil, as well as other noxious weeds.
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This bathymetric map shows contour lines of equal depth, similar to a topographic map would for mountains and valleys
This map shows the area of the watershed relative to the area of the lake. Generally speaking, the larger a watershed is relative to a lake, the greater the influence land use practices on lake water quality
Click image to enlarge
Back to top View or Download Data Use this tool to view or download data from the lake in tabular format. You can
define date ranges and select which parameters to view or download. Chart Data Use the charting tool to look at graphs showing single parameters for a single
water year at a time. Five year water quality trends
A common method of tracking water quality trends in lakes is by calculating
the “trophic state index” (TSI) (Carlson, 1977). TSI indicators predict the biological
productivity of the lake based on water clarity (Secchi) and concentrations of total
phosphorus (TP) and chlorophyll a (Chlor).
The average of these three TSI indicators during the growing season can be used
to place lakes in one of three broad categories:
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1. City of Maple Valley
2. Lake Wilderness Arboretum
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