Geo Bee - US Lakes

Top Lakes in USA

1 Lake Superior Michigan-Minnesota-Wisconsin-Ontario 82,103 km2 2 Lake Huron Michigan-Ontario 59,590 km2 3 Lake Michigan Illinois-Indiana-Michigan-Wisconsin 58,026 km2 4 Lake Erie Michigan-New York-Ohio-Ontario-Pennsylvania 25,667 km2 5 Lake Ontario New York-Ontario 19,011 km2 6 Great Salt Lake (salt) Utah 5,483 km2 7 Lake of the Woods Manitoba-Minnesota-Ontario 3,846 km2 8 Iliamna Lake Alaska 2,626 km2 9 Lake Oahe (man-made) North Dakota-South Dakota 1,774 km2 10 Lake Okeechobee Florida 1,715 km2 11 Lake Pontchartrain (salt) Louisiana 1,634 km2 12 Lake Sakakawea (man-made) North Dakota 1,347 km2 13 Lake Champlain New York-Vermont-Quebec 1,269 km2 14 Becharof Lake Alaska 1,173 km2 15 Lake St. Clair Michigan - Ontario 1,140 km2 16 Red Lake Minnesota 1,106 km2 17 Selawik Lake Alaska 1,046 km2 18 Fort Peck Lake (man-made) Montana 1,018 km2 19 Salton Sea (salt) California 899 km2 20 Rainy Lake Minnesota-Ontario 894 km2

Selawik Lake

Alaska Selawik Lake is a lake located 7 miles southwest of Selawik, Alaska. It is 31 miles long. It is adjacent to the Selawik National Wildlife Refuge and the Baldwin Peninsula, feeding into the Hotham Inlet and Kotzebue Sound.

Becharof Lake

Alaska - Becharof Lake is a 37-mile long lake on the Alaska Peninsula. It is located 23 miles south-east of Egegik, in the Aleutian Range. It is the second largest lake in Alaska after Iliamna Lake

Iliamna Lake

Alaska - The Iliamna Lake, located in southwest Alaska, about 160 km west of Seldovia, is the largest lake in Alaska and the eighth largest lake in the US, occupying an area of 2,626 km2. The water of this lake drains into the Bristol Bay via the Kvichak River. The Iliamna Lake is associated with the Iliamna Lake Monster, an elusive aquatic creature whose existence is yet to be proven. However, a section of experts believes the "Monster" could actually be a White Sturgeon or a Pacific Sleeper Shark. Grayling, trout, and salmon are the three primary fishes caught by anglers in the Iliamna Lake. The lake also serves as the spawning ground for the biggest Red Salmon run in the world.

Salton Sea (salt)

California The Salton Sea is a shallow, saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the San Andreas Fault, predominantly in the U.S. state of California's Imperial and Coachella valleys.

Lake Okeechobee

Florida - Lake Okeechobee is a large lake located in south Florida. It is the second largest natural freshwater lake that completely resides within the United States. Despite being such a large lake in terms of surface area, Lake Okeechobee is very shallow. Its average depth is only 9 feet. The lake is home to a wide variety of wildlife including alligators, large-mouth bass, herons, cranes, white-tailed deer, manatees, river otters, and bobcats.

Lake Michigan

Illinois-Indiana-Michigan-Wisconsin - Lake Michigan, occupying an area of 58,026 km2, is the only Great Lake that lies entirely within the boundaries of the US. The lake ranks third among the largest lakes in the US and is roughly the size of the US state of West Virginia. The US states of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin share the lake. The shores of Lake Michigan are heavily populated with nearly 12 million people living in the region. Tourism is a major source of income in the Lake Michigan area. A large number of tourists arrive in the region in search of recreational opportunities. Seasonal residents stay here during the summer months to enjoy the fresh breeze and natural beauty of the lake.

Lake Sakakawea (man-made)

In North Dakota Lake Sakakawea is a reservoir in the north central United States, located in the Missouri River basin in central North Dakota. It is the largest man-made lake in the state and the third largest in the nation, after Lake Mead and Lake Powell. Lake Sakakawea was created to stem the flooding on the Missouri River and to provide a local energy source. The Garrison Dam was constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers in the 1940s and early 1950s and was finished in 1953. ... Lake Sakakawea is the third largest man-made reservoir in the USA.

Lake Tahoe

Lake Tahoe is the sixth largest lake by volume in the United States. It is located high in the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the border between California and Nevada. It is also the second deepest lake in the US after Crater Lake. The lake is a major tourist attraction for both summer and winter recreation.

Lake Pontchartrain (salt)

Louisiana - Lake Pontchartrain, lake, southeastern Louisiana, U.S. The lake is 40 miles (64 km) long and 25 miles (40 km) wide at its widest point, with an area of 630 square miles (1,631 square km) and a mean depth of 10 to 16 feet (3 to 5 metres). It is more a tidal lagoon than a lake, since it connects eastward through Lake Borgne with the Gulf of Mexico by a narrow passage called The Rigolets.

Lake of the Woods

Manitoba-Minnesota-Ontario - The Lake of the Woods, a 3,846 km2 lake occupies parts of both the US state of Minnesota and Manitoba and Ontario in neighboring Canada. The lake cuts off a part of Minnesota - the Angle Township and the Northwest Angle from the rest of the US. To travel to these places, one needs to either cross the lake or travel through Canada. The Shoal and Kakagi Lake, the Rainy River, and other smaller rivers feed The Lake of the Woods. The lake finally drains into the Winnipeg River. The lake region is a birdwatcher's delight as it thrives with a variety of bird species, notable among them being the piping plover, American white pelicans, and bald eagles. Camping, fishing, and other recreational facilities are available to tourists visiting the Lake of the Woods area for vacations.

Lake St. Clair

Michigan - Ontario Lake St. Clair is a freshwater lake that lies between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Michigan. It was named after Clare of Assisi, on whose feast day it was navigated and christened by French Catholic explorers in 1679.

Lake Superior

Michigan-Minnesota-Wisconsin-Ontario - The largest lake in the US and the biggest among the Great Lakes of North America, Lake Superior spans an area of 82,103 km2, roughly the size of Austria or the US state of South Carolina. The US states of Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin share the Lake Superior with the Canadian province of Ontario. The lake is famous for being the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area. The average depth of the Lake Superior is 147 m, and it holds enough water to submerge the entire Americas under 30 cm of water. Over 200 rivers feed the largest lake in the US, and it drains into the Lake Huron via the St. Marys River. Lake Superior has been associated with numerous shipwrecks in the past and a particular area of the lake between the Grand Marais and the Whitefish Point is known as the "Graveyard of the Great Lakes." It is also widely claimed the lake never gives up its dead. The cold temperatures of Lake Superior's waters inhibit bacterial growth which is needed to make the bodies float due to the gas generated by the bacteria within the dead bodies. More than 80 species of fish like the lake sturgeon, lake trout, coho salmon, burbot, northern pike, walleye, rock bass, etc., live in the waters of the lake. However, the low temperatures and poor nutrient composition of the lake allow only small populations of fish species to survive.

Lake Erie

Michigan-New York-Ohio-Ontario-Pennsylvania - Lake Erie is the fourth largest of the Great Lakes in surface area (25,667 km2). It is, however, the shallowest and the smallest by volume among the Great Lakes. The maximum depth of Lake Erie is only 64 meters. The Canadian province of Ontario and the American states of New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio share the Lake Erie. The US state of Michigan lies to the west of the lake. The lake was the original residence of the Erie Native American tribes from where the lake received its name. The primary inlet of Lake Erie is the Detroit River and the lake drains into the Niagara River. Overfishing, eutrophication, pollution, and algal blooms are some of the environmental threats affecting Lake Erie.

Lake Huron

Michigan-Ontario - Second among the largest lakes in the US

Red Lake

Minnesota Red Lake is a census-designated place within the Lower Red Lake unorganized territory located in Beltrami County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2010 census, Red Lake had a total population of 1,731. The Red Lake Indian Reservation is based in Red Lake.

Rainy Lake

Minnesota-Ontario Rainy Lake is a relatively large freshwater lake straddling the border between the United States and Canada. The Rainy River issues from the west side of the lake and is harnessed to make hydroelectricity for US and Canadian locations.

Fort Peck Lake (man-made)

Montana Fort Peck Lake, or Lake Fort Peck, is a major reservoir in Montana, formed by the Fort Peck Dam on the Missouri River. The lake lies in the eastern prairie region of Montana approximately 140 miles (230 km) east of Great Falls and 120 miles (190 km) north of Billings, reaching into portions of six counties

Lake Ontario

New York-Ontario - Lake Ontario, the fifth biggest lake in the US (19,011 km2), also occupies parts of the Canadian province of Ontario. In the US, it is part of the state of New York. Lake Ontario is fed primarily by the Niagara River, has a mean depth of 86 m, stretches for 311 km, and has the greatest width of 85 km. Lake Ontario is bordered by farmlands to the north, industries around the port cities of Hamilton and Toronto in Ontario and Rochester in New York. Today, the shores of Lake Ontario houses several recreational centers where tourists arrive to participate in various tourist activities like swimming, boating, angling, etc.

Lake Champlian

New York-Vermont-Quebec Lake Champlain is a natural freshwater lake in North America mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada-U.S. border, in the Canadian province of Quebec. The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of Clinton County and Essex County

Lake Oahe (man-made)

North Dakota-South Dakota - Lake Oahe, one of the biggest lakes in the US, and the ninth largest lake in the country, occupies an area of 1,774 km2. The man-made lake exists as a large reservoir behind the Oahe Dam constructed on the Missouri River. The lake stretches from central South Dakota to North Dakota. The maximum depth of the lake is 62 m, it has a length of 372 km, and a shoreline that stretches for 3,620 km. Lake Oahe is a popular tourist destination, receiving approximately 1.5 million visitors every year. 51 recreational areas along the shores of this reservoir offer tourists myriad activities like angling, boating, swimming, bird-watching, etc. Northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye, channel catfish are found in the lake. Lake Oahe is also known for housing populations of the endangered fish, the pallid sturgeon. Prehistoric archeological sites and native American settlements also exist in the lake area.

Crater Lake

Oregon - Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States at 1,943 feet deep. It is a caldera lake, meaning that it is formed from the collapsed land at the center of a volcano. It is a fairly small lake at only 6 miles long and 5 miles wide. It is located at the top of Mount Mazama in Oregon. The lake and the land around the lake are protected as part of the Crater Lake National Park.

The Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are the five largest lakes in the United States and include Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. They are located in the northern Midwest along the border between the United States and Canada. Of the five lakes, only lake Michigan is located entirely in the United States. There are eight states that have shoreline on at least one of the Great Lakes including New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. When all of the Great Lakes are combined, they make up the largest collection of freshwater lakes in the world. They cover over 94,000 square miles of surface area and have 11,000 miles of shoreline. The total volume of the lakes is over 5,400 cubic miles which makes up around 21% of the world's surface freshwater. Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes covering 31,700 square miles. It is also the deepest of the lakes with a maximum depth of 1,335 feet and an average depth of 483 feet. The lakes all interconnect with waterways and also connect to the Atlantic Ocean through canals and the Hudson River. Many of the major cities of North America are located on the shores of the Great Lakes including Cleveland, Buffalo, Chicago, Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Toronto.

Top 10 Lakes by Area in the United States Lake Superior - 31,700 sq. miles Lake Huron - 23,000 sq. miles Lake Michigan - 22,300 sq. miles Lake Erie - 9,910 sq. miles Lake Ontario - 7,340 sq. miles Great Salt Lake - 2,117 sq. miles Lake of the Woods - 1,485 sq. miles Iliamna Lake - 1,014 sq. miles Lake Oahe - 685 sq. miles Lake Okeechobee - 662 sq. miles

Top Ten lakes in US

Great Salt Lake

Utah - The largest lake in the United State that is not part of the Great Lakes is the Great Salt Lake in Utah. As its name implies, the water in the Great Salt Lake is salty. It is even more salty than the ocean. Because it is so salty, no fish live in the lake. Only a few species such as brine shrimp and algae live in the lake itself.