Skip to main content

SPOTTED LAKE KHILUK

     Spotted Lake Khiluk is a saline endorheic alkali lake located northwest of Osoyoos in British Columbia. 
     It is very highly concentrated with numerous different minerals. It contains some of the highest quantities of magnesium sulfate, calcium, and sodium sulfates. It also contains extremely high concentrations of 8 other minerals as well as some small doses of four others such as silver and titanium.

     Most of the water in the lake evaporates over the summer, leaving behind all the minerals. Large “spots” on the lake appear and depending on the mineral composition at the time, the spots will be different colors. The spots are made mainly of magnesium sulfate, which crystallizes in the summer. In the summer only the minerals in the lake remain, and they harden to form natural “walkways” around and between the spots.

     The lake’s minerals were also put to use in the manufacture of ammunition for World War I.

     The lake and its surrounding land were not actually owned by the First Nations. It was owned by the Ernest Smith Family for about 40 years. Despite this, the First Nations were very protective of the lake, so protective that when, in 1979, Smith attempted to have a spa at the lake, they attempted to buy the lake so they could keep it as a sacred site.

      After over 20 years of trying but failing to convince Smith to sell the land, they finally did make a deal in late October 2001, when they bought 22 hectares of land for a total of $720,000. The First Nations paid $150,000 while the Indian Affairs Department paid the remainder.
     To this day, a fence keeps people from reaching the lake’s shore by walking down there from the highway. One can easily see the lake while driving by at high speeds in their car. A lot of people stop on the side of the road for a longer look. At a gate of a driveway that leads to a house near the lake, there is a small sign telling visitors about the lake’s healing powers.

    Today, there is a roadside sign telling visitors that the lake is a cultural and ecologically sensitive area and a traditional medicine lake for the Okanagan Sylix people. The lake can be viewed from the fence that has been erected for protection from the liabilities of public access. Many travelers stop to view the site.



Credits: Sabitha


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

WHY ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC OCEAN ARE NOT MIXED?

Nearly 72% of the earth is filled with water and it is present with different names- oceans, seas, rivers. Why are they named differently? There are five oceans namely Artic ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian ocean and Antarctic ocean . All the oceans are different in their physical and biological character called ocean clines. When we look at the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean junction, they do not mix. Is there any invisible Wall in between them? Many scientists have conducted research to solve this mystery. The Atlantic and Pacific Ocean have different chemical composition. The salinity of the water in the Atlantic Ocean is five times more than the Pacific Ocean. The density of water is also different, so even marine animals in Atlantic Ocean will not go to the Pacific Ocean. They cannot survive in other oceans. Atlantic and Pacific Ocean meet at Cape Horn. The narrow straight line formed by the water bodies is called Drake Strait. The Pacific Ocean is
Post a Comment
Read more

5 Amazing Animal Temple

1) Crocodile Temple:      The Ananthapadmanabhaswamy Temple or Anantha Lake Temple is built for Lord Vishnu. It is also called a crocodile temple. This temple built in the middle of a lake in the little village of Ananthapura, around 6 km from the town of Kumbla in Manjeshwaram Taluk of Kasaragod District of Kerala. There is a harmless crocodile that lived in the Ananthapadmanabhaswamy Temple’s lake. It is a vegetarian. Believable of this place is that you will get lossed posting or objects after visiting this place. 2) Rat Temple:      The Karni Mata Temple is situated at Deshnoke in Rajasthan. This temple is the craziest place because it gives importance to rats. They believe that the god of this temple incarcerated every year as a rat. More than 25,000 black rats are living in this temple. White rats are considered a very holy animal in this temple. The food that gives to people as prasatham is the remaining food eaten by a rat. By mistake, if you hurt any
3 comments
Read more

The Oldest Phone In The World

  The first cellular telephones are called Dyna Tac. It is manufactured from 1983-1994. It received approval from the U.S. FCC on September 21, 1983. Martin Cooper of Motorola made the first publicized handheld mobile phone call on a prototype DynaTAC model on April 3, 1973. This is a reenactment in 2007.    The dimensions of this phone are 3300 x 898 x 445 mm, vol. 1318710 cm³.This cellular phone is available at the minimum weight of 2 pounds. It is used in the ALOHAnet system, including metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) transceiver and modem technology. It has nine additional key.They are Rcl (recall),Clr (clear),Snd (send),Sto (store),Fn (function),EndPwr (power),Lock and Vol (volume).Minimum sim is used in this phone. In 1983, The market price for this phone is $3,995.   In 1930, Travelers could place phone calls from and to ocean liners in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The process was driven by Marine VHF Radio and cost $7 a minute. In 1984 Motorola DynaTAC 8000X wa
6 comments
Read more