Devils Lake State Park, North Dakota: Shoreline Riprap and Wetland

Devils Lake has no natural outlet, so its water levels rise and fall based on precipitation and runoff rather than draining to a river system. Over the past three decades the lake has expanded dramatically, flooding farmland, roads, and stands of trees that once stood on dry ground — visible here as the bare, dead trunks standing in standing water. Riprap like this is placed along roadbeds and embankments around the lake to slow erosion from wave action as the shoreline continues to shift. Devils Lake State Park sits along the lake's edge in Ramsey County and includes wetland habitat used by migratory waterfowl.

Photo taken in July 2015.