Minam Lake
Wallowa County County · Wikipedia Oregon lakes · 59.0 acres

Visit
Plan a visit
Save this place, get directions, or start a short trip plan. Hours and amenities are listed below.
Search to see a fit score for your needs.
Essentials
At a glance
- Hours
See official page for current hours
On site
Visitor amenities
Amenities are not listed for this place yet. Check the official page for current facilities.
Overview
About this park
Minam Lake is a high-elevation reservoir in the Eagle Cap Wilderness of the Wallowa Mountains in the U.S. state of Oregon. The unusual reservoir, a modified natural lake, has outlets on both its north and south ends. The south outlet drains to the Minam River, and the north outlet is the source of the Lostine River. A natural lake at this spot had only a south outlet. In the early 20th century, the lake was enlarged, and its flow altered by a 14-foot (4.3 m) high dam near the south end of the lake. The dam's purpose was to store additional water and to deflect it north for irrigation of farms in the Lostine Valley. It is said that minam is a word that evolved in the mid-19th century from the native word e-mi-ne-mah. The latter referred to the Minam River Valley, where a kind of plant with edible roots grew in abundance. Mah was a suffix meaning valley or canyon.
- Location: Wallowa Mountains, Wallowa County, Oregon
- Type: [[Trophic state index#Oligotrophic|Oligotrophic]] reservoir
- Shore length: 1.6 mi|km}}
- Surface elevation: 7379 ft|m}}
- Max depth: 28 ft|m}}
Setting
Landscape & setting
Lake facts (Wikipedia):
- Surface area: 59 acre|ha}}
- Inflow: |outflow = Minam River and Lostine River
Access
Access & hours
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minam_Lake (Wikipedia / Wikimedia, CC BY-SA). Verify access, seasons, and regulations with the land manager before visiting.
Background
History & notes
List note: reservoir in Eagle Cap Wilderness; source of Lostine and Minam rivers Map / bathymetry image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/%7Ccaption_bathymetry_____%3D?width=1600
Today
Weather
Forecast is advisory — confirm park hours before you go.
Data quality
Sources
Confidence checks: coordinates · website · image · hours · amenities (and last verified when known).
Confidence score
50/ 100
Wikipedia List of lakes of Oregon
- official website
- coordinates
- amenities
- hours
- image
- last verified
Unknown statuses are not treated as open.