Isa Lake – Only Natural Lake in the World to drain Two Different Oceans

Isa Lake Viewpoint is located approximately eight miles to the east of the Old Faithful Area along the Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. It’s not a thrilling spot. When you get to the Old Faithful geyser you can park your vehicle and walk along the edge of a small slice of water laden with water lilies as well as fallen logs. Along the shores of the lake, you will find the Continental Divide elevation sign and an interpretive sign explaining its significance to the Continental Divide and Isa Lake.

The continental divide refers to the geographical division across a continent. It is usually like a ridge of mountains, so that the lakes and rivers on the one side flow in one direction, either into the ocean or ocean, and those on the opposite side flow into another. Isa Lake straddles the continental divide of North America, standing at more than eight thousand feet at the top of the watersheds for two of America’s largest drainage systems: the Snake River as well as the Columbia Rivers, and Missouri and the Mississippi.

It is a lake that has two outlet points. Isa Lake has two outlets The first outlet is on the eastern side of the lake, which flows to the Snake and Columbia Rivers and the second is to the Pacific Ocean by way of the Lewis River. Its outlet to the west is fed by the Firehole River on its way to the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and into the Gulf of Mexico, in that way, it flows into it into the Atlantic Ocean.

Isa lake is therefore it is the sole natural lake to be able to drain into two oceans. This is why it is also referred to for its status as the Two-Ocean Lake. The outflow of the lake is odd, considering that there is an outflow to the Atlantic Ocean that lies on the east side of the lake, as well as its counterpart, the Pacific Ocean to the west.

Isa Lake has no inlet and is fed completely by snowmelt. The majority of the time the flow of the lake generally flows through seepage with the exception of the spring runoff. Isa Lake is believed to be one of the very few natural lakes that drain into two distinct oceans. Another is Wollaston Lake. The eastern part of Isa Lake drains through to the Lewis River to the Pacific Ocean while the western portion of the lake drains through the Firehole River to the Gulf of Mexico, a part of the Missouri river system.