Heavenly Lake Tahoe

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Lake Tahoe Q&A

  1. How large is Lake Tahoe? Lake Tahoe is North America's largest alpine lake, stretching 22 miles long and 12 miles wide. It covers a surface area of 191.6 square miles and has 72 miles of shoreline. Lake Tahoe is two-thirds in the state of California and one-third in the state of Nevada.
  2. How many feet above sea level is Lake Tahoe? The Lake's average surface is 6,226.95 feet above sea level and the natural rim is 6,223 feet above sea level, making it the highest lake of its size in the United States.
  3. What is the highest mountain in Lake Tahoe? Mount Tallac, located on the Lake's South Shore, stands at 9,735 feet, and is the highest peak rising from the shoreline. The highest point in the Tahoe Basin is Freel Peak at 10,881 feet.
  4. How deep is Lake Tahoe? Lake Tahoe is the third deepest lake in North America and the tenth deepest in the world. Tahoe's deepest point is 1,645 feet near Crystal Bay, meaning the Face at Heavenly is 55 feet higher than the Lake at 1,700 vertical feet. The average depth of the Lake is 989 feet.
  5. How much water does Lake Tahoe hold? There is an estimated 38.75 trillion gallons of water contained in the Lake and it is 99.9 percent pure, with visibility to 75 feet below the surface!
  6. How old is Lake Tahoe? Lake Tahoe is said to be a "young lake," having formed 10,000 to 11,000 years ago during the last ice age. Glaciation occurred, carving out valleys during their downward movement creating Donner, Emerald Bay and Fallen Leaf Lakes. The maximum lake level during glaciation approached 800 feet higher than its present level. Large sedimentary terraces perched above the Lake remain as evidence of its old shoreline.
  7. How many streams flow in and out of Lake Tahoe? There are sixty-three streams flowing into Lake Tahoe, and only one that flows out of the Basin and that's the Truckee River. The Truckee River flows from the North Shore in Tahoe City, through the Truckee Valley and into the lowlands of Reno.
  8. Does Lake Tahoe ever freeze? Lake Tahoe never freezes during the winter! Due to its constant temperature of 39 degrees Fahrenheit maintained at depths below 700 feet, and because of the Lake's constant movement and volume of water, Lake Tahoe never freezes.