Tern Lake Wildlife viewing platform
Tern Lake day use area

This lake, with its marshy perimeter becomes a nursery each spring for Arctic terns. These fishing birds fly thousands of miles from Antarctica to nest in the north.

They stay only long enough for their eggs to hatch and their babies to grow strong for the flight back into what will be summer at the other end of the earth. Named for these Arctic terns, the lake supports a diversity of wildlife. Moose browse along the shoreline, common loons dive among the vegetation, and beavers, crisscross the marshy shallows. Mountain goats and Dall sheep cling to mountain sides. Interpretive signs help visitors identify wildlife. This turnoff provides access to the 25-site Tern Lake day use area. (0.4 miles past the viewing platform), and Dave's creek, where king and sockeye salmon spawn in mid to late summer.