Becharof Lake
Encyclopedia
Becharof Lake is a 37 miles (59.5 km) long lake
on the Alaska Peninsula
. It is located 23 miles (37 km) south-east of Egegik
, in the Aleutian Range
.
, USC&GS for Russian navigator Dmitry Bocharov
, IRN, who was at Kodiak
and explored Alaska in 1788 and 1791.
In the late spring of 1791, chief manager of the Shelikhov Company in Russian America, Aleksandr Baranov, directed Bocharov to undertake an exploration of the northwest shore of the Alaska Peninsula from its southern tip north to Bristol Bay. He sailed and paddled from Unalaska in two 30-foot long open walrus-skin covered boats crewed by a total of 20-30 men. Having instructions to look for a portage across the peninsula near Kodiak, he went up the Egegik River into the lake that later bore his name (albeit by an Americanized spelling). He probed the lake to its most eastern extent, and there made a portage to the Pacific in the summer of 1791 and proceeded on to Kodiak, where he reported his findings to Baranov.
The Russian Hydrog. Dept. published the name "Oz(ero) Ugashek" on Chart 1455 in 1852.
Becharof Lake is the second largest lake in Alaska
after Iliamna Lake
, and the fourteenth largest lake in the United States of America.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
on the Alaska Peninsula
Alaska Peninsula
The Alaska Peninsula is a peninsula extending about to the southwest from the mainland of Alaska and ending in the Aleutian Islands. The peninsula separates the Pacific Ocean from Bristol Bay, an arm of the Bering Sea....
. It is located 23 miles (37 km) south-east of Egegik
Egegik, Alaska
Egegik is a city in Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 116.-Geography:...
, in the Aleutian Range
Aleutian Range
The Aleutian Range is a major mountain range of southwest Alaska, extending from Chakachamna Lake to Unimak Island, at the tip of the Alaska Peninsula. It includes all of the mountains of the Peninsula. It is especially notable for its large number of active volcanoes, which are also part of the...
.
History
The lake was named in 1868 by naturalist W. H. DallW. H. Dall
William Healey Dall was an American naturalist, a prominent malacologist, and one of the earliest scientific explorers of interior Alaska...
, USC&GS for Russian navigator Dmitry Bocharov
Dmitry Bocharov
Dmitry Bocharov is a Russian chess Grandmaster .In 2003 he tied for 1st-7th with Vladimir Burmakin, Eduardas Rozentalis, Philipp Schlosser, Alexander Areshchenko, Jakov Geller and Evgeny Miroshnichenko in the Cappelle-la-Grande Open. In 2004, came first at Abu Dhabi. In 2006 he won the 14th...
, IRN, who was at Kodiak
Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak is one of 7 communities and the main city on Kodiak Island, Kodiak Island Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. All commercial transportation between the entire island and the outside world goes through this city either via ferryboat or airline...
and explored Alaska in 1788 and 1791.
In the late spring of 1791, chief manager of the Shelikhov Company in Russian America, Aleksandr Baranov, directed Bocharov to undertake an exploration of the northwest shore of the Alaska Peninsula from its southern tip north to Bristol Bay. He sailed and paddled from Unalaska in two 30-foot long open walrus-skin covered boats crewed by a total of 20-30 men. Having instructions to look for a portage across the peninsula near Kodiak, he went up the Egegik River into the lake that later bore his name (albeit by an Americanized spelling). He probed the lake to its most eastern extent, and there made a portage to the Pacific in the summer of 1791 and proceeded on to Kodiak, where he reported his findings to Baranov.
The Russian Hydrog. Dept. published the name "Oz(ero) Ugashek" on Chart 1455 in 1852.
Becharof Lake is the second largest lake in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
after Iliamna Lake
Iliamna Lake
Iliamna Lake or Lake Iliamna is a lake in South-West Alaska, at North end of Alaska Peninsula, between Kvichak Bay and Cook Inlet, West of Seldovia, Alaska Bristol Bay Low....
, and the fourteenth largest lake in the United States of America.