Tag Archives: Lake Champlain

About Lake Champlain

VT Fish & Wildlife Seeks Permit for Lake Champlain Dredging

Project Details

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department proposes to place fill material and perform dredging in Lake Champlain in conjunction with  improvements at the Chimney Point State Fishing Access area located off Route 17 in Addison, Vermont

The proposed work includes the removal of an existing concrete ramp and the construction of a new 28-foot-wide by 73-foot-long reinforced concrete ramp. The ramp will extend a maximum of 60 feet beyond Ordinary High Water (OHW). This portion of the work will involve the placement of about 207 cubic yards of stone fill and precast concrete below OHW and will impact about 3,385 square feet of lake bottom.

Work will include excavation of 1,646 cubic yards of silt and gravel to a depth of four feet OLW (Ordinary Low Water) from an area of about 23,250 square feet. Excavated materials will be disposed of in an upland, non-wetland site. Additional work will include the temporary placement of 3,000 cubic yards of excavated material and stone for the dredging and the construction of the ramp; and installation of a 90′ by 6′ seasonal dock adjacent to the south side of the ramp.

Impact

The project is designed to improve the existing State Fishing Access area for recreational boaters and fishermen. The Chimney Point State Fishing Access will be closed while the project is underway. The nearest State Fishing access Area is McCuen Slang Fishing Access, about two miles south on VT Route 125.

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About Lake Champlain

Looking about Lake Champlain from above

Looking about Lake Champlain from above

Lake Champlain (French: lac Champlain) is a natural, freshwater lake bordered by the states of Vermont and New York and in the north by the Canadian province of Quebec. The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of Clinton and Essex Counties. Most of this area is part of the Adirondack Park. The eastern shore of Lake Champlain is composed of Franklin, Chittenden and Addison Counties of Vermont, and Vermont’s Grand Isle County is completely surrounded by Lake Champlain. The Quebec portion (the regional county municipalities of Le Haut-Richelieu and Brome–Missisquoi) forms the northern boundary of Lake Champlain.

Lake Champlain is over 120 miles (193 km) long and, at its widest about 12 miles (19 km) wide.  Its surface area covers about 435 sq mi (1,127 km2) has 587  (945 km) miles of shoreline and about 80 islands. Lake Champlain flows north from Whitehall, New York across the U.S./Canadian border to its outlet at the Richelieu River in Quebec. From there, the water flows into the St. Lawrence River, and eventually into the Atlantic Ocean at the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

With an average depth of 64 feet (19.5 m) and maximum depth of 400 feet (122 m)  in the area between Charlotte, Vermont and Essex, New York., Lake Champlain holds 6.2 cu miles (25.8 cubic km) of water or 6.8 trillion gallons (25.8 cubic km) .

The Lake is divided into five distinct areas, each with different physical and chemical characteristics and water quality. These lake segments include: the South Lake, the Main Lake (or Broad Lake), Malletts Bay, the Inland Sea (or Northeast Arm), and Missisquoi Bay.

Samuel de Champlain

Samuel_de_Champlain (1567-1635) French explorer of Lake Champlain

Who was this man for whom Lake Champlain is named?

Samuel de Champlain was an explorer, geographer and colonizer. He was born in 1567 in Brouage, a village on the Bay of Biscay. As a captain of a Spanish sailing ship, serving under Don Francisco Colombo, he visited the Spanish West Indies and Mexico. Between 1601 and 1603 he wrote his first book, the ‘Bref Discours’.

 

Samuel de Champlain : “Father of New France”

Statue of Samuel de Champlain, Isle La Motte, Vermont

Champlain made his first voyage to the St. Lawrence River in 1603 and was active in attempting to establish the French colony in Acadia. During this time he also explored the seacoast from Cape Breton to Martha’s Vineyard.

In 1609 Champlain discovered the lake that bears his name today. It was here that he fought his first battle with the Iroquois.

Champlain explored the Ottawa River to above Lac Coulange in 1613, and in 1615 he reached Georgian Bay. From 1617 through 1629 he worked to strengthen the colony of Quebec and promote trade on the lower Saint Lawrence River.

After the surrender of Quebec in 1629 he was taken captive and imprisoned in London, but he returned to New France in 1633 and remained there until his death on Christmas Day 1635.