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Iliamna Lake

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Iliamna Lake or Lake Iliamna is a lake in southwest Alaska at [59°46′N 154°50′W], at the base of the Alaska Peninsula. It is the largest lake in Alaska and one of the largest in North America, covering about 2,600 km² (1,000 sq. miles). The lake is 120 km (75 miles) long and up to 35 km (22 miles) wide. Through the Kvichak River, its waters drain into Bristol Bay.

Location of Iliamna, Alaska

Iliamna Lake is noted for its sport fishing.

The villages of Iliamna, Newhalen, Kokhanok and Pedro Bay lie on the shores of Iliamna Lake.

Some claim the word Iliamna is said to be the name of a mythical huge blackfish which bit holes in the boats of people on the lake. However, the name is most certainly Athabascan in origin. As all words in Athabascan which end with the suffix "na" pertain to water, the word Iliamna most probably refers to the large size of the lake, not to any specific legend, although the exact origin is obscure and not well understood today.

 


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