Borax Lake

Why You Should Visit
An oasis in the Alvord Desert, 10-acre Borax Lake is remnant of a once-vast lake ecosystem that extended across southeastern Oregon. The highly unusual and endangered Borax Lake chub evolved to thrive in this lake fed by hot springs, where surface temperatures can reach 105 degrees.

Location
In Oregon's Alvord Desert, east of Steens Mountain

Size
320 acres

How to Prepare for Your Visit
Please remember that Borax Lake is a biological reserve. Do not enter or otherwise disturb the lake or adjacent hot springs. For more information, please see our Preserve Visitation Guidelines.

Directions
From Fields (about 105 miles S of Burns on Highway 205), head N toward Andrews. After 1.75 mile (.25 mile N of the southerly junction with 205), turn right (E) onto a dirt track at the power substation on the right side of the road. Follow the dirt track which parallels the power line due east for two miles, then turn left (N) and go one mile. A Bureau of Land Management fence crosses the road approximately .5 mile SW of the lake. Park along the road next to the gate and walk to Borax Lake. Follow the main track in a northeasterly direction past the lower reservoir to the slightly elevated mound where Borax Lake lies.

What to See: Animals
The lake and surrounding ponds and marshes, including wetlands dominated by three-square bulrush, provide habitat for many waterfowl and other birds, including snowy plovers, black necked stilts, Forster's terns, black-crowned night herons, American avocets, willets, phalaropes and other shorebirds. Because the lake and marsh do not freeze in winter, they provide important habitat for wintering waterfowl. Canada geese, long-billed curlews and marsh hawks nest in the area. Neotropical birds migrating along the Pacific Flyway use the area as a stopover. Western whip-tail and leopard lizards are found here at the northern end of their range.

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
The unusual nature of the Borax Lake ecosystem has made it the subject of many ecological, geological and hydrological studies. Ecologists have monitored the population of the endangered Borax Lake chub and studied their feeding and reproductive ecology. Surveys of aquatic invertebrates and geothermal microbes have been taken in Borax Lake and the adjacent hotsprings. Detailed studies of water temperature, water quality and the geology of the areas have also been done. Many of these studies were motivated by the threat of nearby geothermal development. The area is now protected from geothermal development through provisions in the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Act of 2000.