Perry Lake is a

US Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

operated

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

in northeast

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

. Its primary purposes are

flood control Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...

, water reserve for nearby areas and regional recreation. The lake is approximately 11,150 acres (45 km²) in size, with over of shoreline. Perry Lake's full multi-purpose pool elevation is above sea level. Perry Lake is located about west of

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

, just northwest of

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...

. Its close proximity to Kansas City, Lawrence, and the state capitol,

Topeka Topeka ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeaste ...

, make it a very popular destination, with the nickname "Paradise on the Plains".

History

The dam was constructed on the Delaware River to help control flooding downstream in both the Delaware and Kansas rivers. Completed in 1966, the rolled earth fill dam is long and rises to in height above the stream bed, abating flooding for over of northeast Kansas. In 1968 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reached a long term land usage lease with the Kansas Parks and Resources Department, allowing for the development of Perry State Park.

Geography

Perry Lake is located at (39.1773424, -95.4516964) at an elevation of . It lies in northeastern

in the Dissected Till Plains region of North America's Central Lowlands. The entirety of the reservoir lies within Jefferson County. The reservoir is impounded at its southern end by Perry Dam. The dam is located at (39.1138886, -95.4252525) at an elevation of . The

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

is both the reservoir's primary inflow from the north and outflow to the south. Smaller tributaries include Duck Creek, French Creek, and Rock Creek from the west and Little Slough Creek, Slough Creek, and Evans Creek from the east.

U.S. Route 24 U.S. Route 24 or U.S. Highway 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States Numbered Highways of 1926 which runs east and west for most of its routing. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Misso ...

runs generally east-west approximately south of the dam. Kansas Highway 237 runs generally north-south from U.S. 24 into Perry State Park. There, it becomes West Lake Road, crossing the lake's southwestern

arm In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between ...

, and then it turns to the west. Ferguson Road, a paved county road, runs generally north-south east of the reservoir, crossing its southeastern arm. Kansas Highway 92, which runs east-west, crosses the northern portion of the reservoir. Several settlements lie on or near the reservoir. The largest is its namesake, the community of

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

, located on the Delaware River a few miles south of the dam. Ozawkie lies on the western shore at the lake's northern end. To the east and south of Ozawkie, a number of

unincorporated communities An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

lie on both sides of the lake. In order from north to south, these are: Lake Shore, Lakewood Hills, and Lakeside Village on the eastern shore and Indian Ridge, West Shore, Hilldale, Hilldale South, Lake Ridge, and Hickory Acres on the western shore. Thompsonville lies immediately south of the lake at the west end of the dam.

Hydrography

The surface area, surface elevation, and water volume of the reservoir fluctuate based on inflow and local climatic conditions. In terms of capacity, the Corps of Engineers vertically divides the reservoir into a set of pools based on volume and water level, and the reservoir is considered full when filled to the capacity of its multi-purpose pool. When full, Perry Lake has a surface area of , a surface elevation of , and a volume of . When filled to maximum capacity, it has a surface area of , a surface elevation of , and a volume of . The streambed underlying the reservoir has an elevation of . Since the reservoir's initial flooding, sedimentation has gradually accumulated on the reservoir bottom thus raising its elevation.

Activities

Perry State Park, located along the southwest part of Perry Lake, offers a wide variety of water recreation and outdoor activities: *Boating: Boats and personal watercraft of all types are allowed. No limits are placed on horsepower, however boaters must follow all applicable state laws. Three marinas and multiple boat launch ramps are available around Perry Lake. *Camping: The Army Corps of Engineers Slough Creek Campground offers 265 campsites in a mix of walk-in tent sites, sites with full electrical and water hookup, and two large designated group campsites. Perry State Park offers a further 102 campsites with full utility hookups and over 200 primitive campsites. Cabin rentals are also available from the state park. *Equestrian activities: Perry State Park and the public use Corps of Engineers land has over 25 miles of horse trails for exploration. Primitive camping is allowed at select locations along the trails. *Fishing: Bassmaster.com has named Perry Lake one of America's 100 best bass lakes. In addition to the

white bass The white bass, silver bass, or sand bass (''Morone chrysops'') is a freshwater fish of the temperate bass family Moronidae. commonly around 12–15 inches long. The species' main color is silver-white to pale green. Its back is dark, with whit ...

and

largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus nigricans'') is a carnivorous, freshwater fish, freshwater, ray-finned fish in the Centrarchidae (sunfish) family, native to the eastern United States, eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada an ...

, many other species of fish are also available to anglers including

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or, in Texas, "copper nose", is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands ea ...

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus''), known informally as the "channel cat", is a species of catfish native to North America. They are North America's most abundant catfish species, and the official state fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebra ...

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxi ...

sauger The sauger (''Sander canadensis'') is a freshwater perciform fish of the family Percidae that resembles its close relative, the walleye. The species is a member of the largest vertebrate order, the Perciformes.Jaeger, Matthew. 2004. Montana's ...

, and

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...

. *Hike/Bike trails: Nine bike trails of varying length and difficulty are provided. The Perry Lake Trail system for hikers has been nationally recognized.

References

External links