Lake Tahoe

:Tahoe redirects here. For the SUV, see Chevrolet Tahoe.

Geography

Lake Tahoe is one of the deepest (1645 feet/501 m), largest (192 sq. mi./497 km²)¹, and highest (6229 feet/1898 m) lakes in the United States. Only Oregon's Crater Lake is deeper at 1930 feet (588 m). Lake Tahoe is in the Sierra Nevada, on the border between California and Nevada, with approximately two-thirds of the shoreline in California.

Related Topics:
Lakes - United States - Oregon - Crater Lake - Sierra Nevada - California - Nevada

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Although for much of Tahoe's circumference, highways run within sight of the lake shore, some important parts of the California shoreline now lie within state parks or are protected by the United States Forest Service. Nevada seems to have been less active, or less successful, in its conservation efforts.

Related Topics:
Circumference - State park - United States Forest Service - Conservation

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Lake Tahoe is about 22 mi (35 km) long and 12 mi (19 km) wide and has 72 mi (116 km) of shoreline and a surface area of 191 square miles or 495 square kilometers.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Lake Tahoe Basin was formed by geologic block (normal) faulting about 2 to 3 million years ago. A geologic block fault is a fracture in the Earth's crust causing blocks of land to move up or down. Uplifted blocks created the Carson Range on the east and the Sierra Nevada on the west. Down-dropped blocks created the Lake Tahoe Basin in between. Some of the highest peaks of the Lake Tahoe Basin that formed during this process were Freel Peak at 10,891 ft (3,320 m), Monument Peak at 10,067 ft (3,068 m) (the present Heavenly Valley Ski Area), Pyramid Peak at 9,983 ft (3,043 m) (in the Desolation Wilderness), and Mount Tallac at 9,735 ft (2,967 m).

Related Topics:
Geologic block (normal) faulting - Carson Range - Sierra Nevada - Freel Peak - Monument Peak - Pyramid Peak - Desolation Wilderness - Mount Tallac

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Snow, rain, and streams filled the southern and lowest part of the basin, forming the ancestral Lake Tahoe. Modern Lake Tahoe was shaped and landscaped by the scouring glaciers during the Ice Age (the Great Ice Age began a million or more years ago). Many streams flow into Lake Tahoe, but the lake is drained only by the Truckee River, which flows northeast through Reno and into Pyramid Lake in Nevada.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The south shore is dominated by the lake's largest city, South Lake Tahoe, California, which neighbors Stateline, Nevada. Tahoe City, California is located on the lake's northwest shore.

Related Topics:
South Lake Tahoe - California - Stateline, Nevada - Tahoe City, California

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~