Lake Abraham

 

Lake Abraham is an artificial lake and Alberta's largest reservoir. This lake has a surface area of 53.7 km2 and a length of 32 km. Although man-made, the lake has the blue color of other glacial lakes in the Rocky Mountains which is caused by rock flour as in other glacial lakes.

The lake was built on the upper course of the North Saskatchewan River, in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, and lines David Thompson Highway between Saskatchewan River Crossing and Nordegg.

The Government of Alberta sponsored a contest to name the lake in February 1972 during the final stages of construction of the Bighorn Dam. Students across the province were asked to submit names taking into consideration "historical significance, prominent persons, geography and topography, and the value of the lake." It was named for Silas Abraham, an inhabitant of the Saskatchewan River valley in the nineteenth century.

This amazing lake was a heavenly place for photographers and tourists. The ice coverage of the lakes varies throughout the winter. It usually freezes by the end of December but did not freeze until January in 2020.