Fox Chain of Lakes Investigation and Water Quality Management Plan

The Fox Chain of Lakes consists of nine major internally connected lakes located in Lake and McHenry Counties in northern Illinois. The main inflow into the lake system is the Fox River. Other tributaries of importance are the Sequoit, Nippersink, and Squaw Creeks, and Lily Lake Drain. The drainage area of the Fox River at Johnsburg, immediately downstream of the Fox Chain of Lakes, is 1184 square miles. Approximately 75 percent of the drainage area lies in Wisconsin. [For locations, see figure 13, page 34.] The surface water levels of the system are maintained by a dam at McHenry. At normal pool elevation, the water surface area of the lake system is about 6850 acres. The shoreline extends 48 miles and there is an additional 30 miles of dredged channel shoreline to accommodate demands for lake frontage property