Devils Lake Basin

The Devils Lake Basin in North Dakota is a 3,810 square-mile closed subbasin in the Red River of the North Basin. About 3,320 square miles of the total 3,810 square miles is tributary to Devils Lake, and the remainder is tributary to East and West Stump Lakes. The Devils Lake Basin contributes naturally to the Red River Basin only when the elevation of Devils Lake is greater than 1,459 feet. At an elevation of about 1,447 feet, Devils Lake begins to spill into the Stump Lakes; and at an elevation of about 1,459 feet, the combined lakes begin to spill through Tolna Coulee into the Sheyenne River, a tributary to the Red River. Devils Lake is characterized by large fluctuations in elevation.