freshwater lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
Papakating Creek
Papakating Creek is a tributary of the Wallkill River located in Frankford and Wantage townships in Sussex County, New Jersey in the United States. The creek rises in a small swamp located beneath the eastern face of Kittatinny Mountain in Fran ...
, a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Wallkill River
The Wallkill River, a tributary of the Hudson, drains Lake Mohawk in Sparta, New Jersey, flowing from there generally northeasterly U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Oct ...
, the lake was created in the 1950s by
dam
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...
ming an unnamed mountain stream as the feature of a private residential development. The stream, now known as
Neepaulakating Creek
Neepaulakating Creek is a 2.4-mile long (3.8 km) tributary of Papakating Creek in Wantage Township in Sussex County, New Jersey in the United States.United States Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information SystemFeature Detail Report ...
, did not receive a name until 2002.Friends of Lake Neepaulin, Nathaniel Sajdak, Jennifer E. Runyon (USGS), United States Board of Geographic Names Case Brief: Neepaulakating Creek (2002). Retrieved July 20, 2015.
Description
Lake Neepaulin is a man-made lake created from the damming of
Neepaulakating Creek
Neepaulakating Creek is a 2.4-mile long (3.8 km) tributary of Papakating Creek in Wantage Township in Sussex County, New Jersey in the United States.United States Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information SystemFeature Detail Report ...
, a small mountain stream that was not named until 2002. The creek's
headwaters
The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source.
Definition
The ...
are located approximately northwest of the north end of Lake Neepaulin. These headwaters are located a short distance south of County Route 650 (Libertyville Road) roughly halfway between the
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
Papakating Creek
Papakating Creek is a tributary of the Wallkill River located in Frankford and Wantage townships in Sussex County, New Jersey in the United States. The creek rises in a small swamp located beneath the eastern face of Kittatinny Mountain in Fran ...
, a tributary of the
Wallkill River
The Wallkill River, a tributary of the Hudson, drains Lake Mohawk in Sparta, New Jersey, flowing from there generally northeasterly U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Oct ...
. The creek, lake, and its watershed are located in the
Kittatinny Valley
The Kittatinny Valley is a section of the Great Appalachian Valley in Sussex and Warren counties in northwestern New Jersey that is bounded on the northwest by Kittatinny Mountain, and in the southeast by the New Jersey Highlands region. The val ...
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) is a government agency in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is responsible for managing the state's natural resources and addressing issues related to pollution. NJDEP now has a staff ...
(NJDEP), two developed lake communities in the Papakating Creek watershed—Lake Neepaulin and the nearby Clove Acres Lake contribute to
phosphorus
Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...
loading in the waters of Papakating Creek. The phosphorus loading may originate from the runoff of
fertilizer
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
applications on residential lawns, nearby agricultural operations, or from large populations of
geese
A goose ( : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some other birds, mostly related to the she ...
In the 1950s, a real estate developer dammed an unnamed stream located to the west and south of Sussex Borough and created Lake Neepaulin.Eric Oberhauer, "Wantage resident suing over costs of Lake Neepaulin dam", ''The New Jersey Herald'', April 22, 2012. The lake was the center of a planned private lakeside residential community. The lake's name is an amalgamation of the names of the original developer's children. In 2014, Wantage Township acquired the lake from the former non-profit management organization and has opened designated public areas to township residents for recreation. In acquiring the property, the municipality assumed responsibility for repayment of a $1.2 million dam restoration loan from the NJDEP.Greg Watry "Wantage OKs rules for use of Lake Neepaulin" ''The New Jersey Herald'', June 26, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2015.