Lake Manly, which appears in California’s Death Valley National Park when enough rain falls, recently migrated, thanks to the wind. With not enough water, it’s closed to boats.
The lake returned in August 2023 after Hurricane Hilary dropped 2.2 inches of rain on the arid national park. In normal years when the lake is absent, visitors see miles of salt flats, including crystallized, polygonal formations, park officials said in a release Monday.
The lake shrank until an additional 1.5 inches of rain came, making it deep enough for kayakers and other boaters.
At its most recent peak, Lake Manly was 1 foot deep, 3 miles long and 6 miles wide, park officials explained.
Strong 40 mph winds in the park from Thursday to Saturday finally put a dent in Lake Manly, whipping it 2 miles to the north. The lake also spread out over a wider area and lost volume.
The lake then went back to its original bed, but it was shallower and muddier than before. Anticipating Lake Manly’s eventual disappearance, park officials have banned vessels so people don’t leave boat trails and footprints from the road to the water.
“People were walking a long way, sometimes dragging their boats. This leaves footprints and drag marks that will likely be visible for years. … Visitors for the next few years would prefer to see the natural polygon designs in the salt, rather than hard-crusted footprints and deep boat drag marks,” DVNP Superintendent Mike Reynolds said in a statement.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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