Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park

LaCrosse, Washington

Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park confluence with Lower Snake River below Little Goose Dam near Perry, WA. The Palouse River is a tributary of the Snake River located in the U.S. states of Washington and Idaho. It flows for 167 miles (269 km) southwestwards, primarily through the Palouse region of southeastern Washington. Its canyon was carved out by a fork in the catastrophic Missoula Floods of the previous ice age, which spilled over the northern Columbia Plateau and flowed into the Snake River, eroding the river's present course in a few thousand years.

Lyons Ferry State Park is a publicly owned recreation area located some 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Starbuck, Washington. The park is on Washington State Route 261 near the confluence of the Snake and Palouse Rivers, which is considered part of Lake Herbert G. West since the construction of Lower Monumental Dam in the 1960s. The state park offers facilities for boating, fishing, hiking, and swimming. It is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation.

Facilities: Parking and Restrooms can be found inside Lyons Ferry State Park which lies within 0.3 miles from the marked location.

COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is still essential. Only go to the beach if you are able to keep 6 feet or 2 meters away from others. Follow the instructions provided by your local health authorities. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter our efforts to curb the virus’s spread.

Water Quality
  • Passed water quality tests at least 95% of the time

  • Historical Status
  • This status is based on the latest sample, taken on July 11th, 2022. Snake River Waterkeeper updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on July 11th, 2022 at 12:05 PM.
For water quality icon legend, click:  
Current Weather
2°C
Clear and sunny
Monitoring Frequency

Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park is sampled weekly from May 25th to September 6th.

Source Information

There is currently very limited water quality monitoring of Idaho's inland swim sites. The federal Beach Act does not cover freshwater or riverine beaches, and states in the Basin do not monitor Snake River swimming beaches or recreational access sites.

As part of its Water Quality Program, Snake River Waterkeeper monitors water quality at more than 100 sites on the Snake River and its tributaries for temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, salinity/conductivity/total dissolved solids, ammonia, and nitrates. Data are collected at sample sites June-October and assigned safety ratings based on comparison to EPA's Recreational Water Quality Criteria for Human Health:

pH: 5 – 9 µg/L
Salinity/Conductivity/Total Dissolved Solids: 500 mg/L
Nitrates: 10 mg/L

A site is marked Green when single sample results meet all Human Health Criteria.
A site is marked Red when the results are equal to or above Human Health Criteria.
A site is marked Grey when there are no current results or no available information.
Sites found to exceed EPA's Aquatic Health Criteria are noted in site descriptions.

While criteria measured are useful indicators of contamination, there are many other potential sources of pollution that are not reflected in our Swim Guide, including E.coli and other bacteria, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, fertilizers, and pesticides that harm aquatic life.

Download the free app for smartphone and learn about Swim Guide 3.0 at www.theswimguide.org. To learn more about our efforts to protect and restore the Snake River's water quality, visit www.snakeriverwaterkeeper.org.

Read more
Water Quality Graph

Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park

LaCrosse, Washington

COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is still essential. Only go to the beach if you are able to keep 6 feet or 2 meters away from others. Follow the instructions provided by your local health authorities. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter our efforts to curb the virus’s spread.

Water Quality
  • Passed water quality tests at least 95% of the time
  • Historical Status
  • This status is based on the latest sample, taken on July 11th, 2022. Snake River Waterkeeper updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on July 11th, 2022 at 12:05 PM.
For water quality icon legend, click:  
Current Weather
2°C
Clear and sunny

Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park confluence with Lower Snake River below Little Goose Dam near Perry, WA. The Palouse River is a tributary of the Snake River located in the U.S. states of Washington and Idaho. It flows for 167 miles (269 km) southwestwards, primarily through the Palouse region of southeastern Washington. Its canyon was carved out by a fork in the catastrophic Missoula Floods of the previous ice age, which spilled over the northern Columbia Plateau and flowed into the Snake River, eroding the river's present course in a few thousand years.

Lyons Ferry State Park is a publicly owned recreation area located some 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Starbuck, Washington. The park is on Washington State Route 261 near the confluence of the Snake and Palouse Rivers, which is considered part of Lake Herbert G. West since the construction of Lower Monumental Dam in the 1960s. The state park offers facilities for boating, fishing, hiking, and swimming. It is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation.

Facilities: Parking and Restrooms can be found inside Lyons Ferry State Park which lies within 0.3 miles from the marked location.

Monitoring Frequency

Palouse River at Lyons Ferry State Park is sampled weekly from May 25th to September 6th.

Source Information

There is currently very limited water quality monitoring of Idaho's inland swim sites. The federal Beach Act does not cover freshwater or riverine beaches, and states in the Basin do not monitor Snake River swimming beaches or recreational access sites.

As part of its Water Quality Program, Snake River Waterkeeper monitors water quality at more than 100 sites on the Snake River and its tributaries for temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, salinity/conductivity/total dissolved solids, ammonia, and nitrates. Data are collected at sample sites June-October and assigned safety ratings based on comparison to EPA's Recreational Water Quality Criteria for Human Health:

pH: 5 – 9 µg/L
Salinity/Conductivity/Total Dissolved Solids: 500 mg/L
Nitrates: 10 mg/L

A site is marked Green when single sample results meet all Human Health Criteria.
A site is marked Red when the results are equal to or above Human Health Criteria.
A site is marked Grey when there are no current results or no available information.
Sites found to exceed EPA's Aquatic Health Criteria are noted in site descriptions.

While criteria measured are useful indicators of contamination, there are many other potential sources of pollution that are not reflected in our Swim Guide, including E.coli and other bacteria, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, fertilizers, and pesticides that harm aquatic life.

Download the free app for smartphone and learn about Swim Guide 3.0 at www.theswimguide.org. To learn more about our efforts to protect and restore the Snake River's water quality, visit www.snakeriverwaterkeeper.org.

Read more
Water Quality Graph

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