Deepest Lakes in the United States: Verified Bathymetry

Klamath County, Oregon

Crater Lake is a caldera lake located in south-central Oregon. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its intense blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fills a 2,148-foot-deep caldera that was formed around 7,700 years ago by the catastrophic collapse of the volcano Mount Mazama. Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and the ninth deepest lake in the world.

Placer, El Dorado, Washoe (NV), Douglas (NV) County, California

Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake situated in the Sierra Nevada of the United States, straddling the state line between California and Nevada. Formed approximately two million years ago as part of the Lake Tahoe Basin, it is the second deepest lake in the United States (1,645 feet) and the sixth largest lake by volume in the nation. It is internationally famous for its exceptional water clarity, cobalt blue color, and surrounding alpine ski and hiking terrain.

Chelan County, Washington

Lake Chelan is a narrow, 50.5-mile long glacier-carved fjord lake located in north-central Washington. Reaching a maximum depth of 1,486 feet, it is the third-deepest lake in the United States and the 26th deepest in the world. The lake’s bottom is 386 feet below sea level (a cryptodepression). The remote northern tip at Stehekin is accessible only by boat, floatplane, or backpacking trail through the North Cascades National Park.

Chippewa, Mackinac, Luce, Alger, Marquette, Houghton, Keweenaw, Ontonagon, Gogebic County, Michigan

Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area (31,700 sq miles / 20.28 million acres) and the third largest by volume, holding 10% of the world’s surface fresh water. Shared by Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Canadian province of Ontario, Superior is known for its cold, clear, oceanic-scale waters, historic shipwrecks, and dramatic sandstone sea cliffs like Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Bonner, Kootenai County, Idaho

Lake Pend Oreille is the largest and deepest lake in Idaho, located in the northern Idaho Panhandle. Carved by continental glaciers during the Ice Age and flooded by the catastrophic prehistoric Missoula Floods, it reaches 1,150 feet in depth, making it the fifth-deepest lake in the United States. Due to its great depth, calm deep acoustic properties, and absence of commercial ocean background noise, the U.S. Navy operates an advanced submarine acoustic research detachment at Bayview.

Cook, Lake (IL); Milwaukee, Door (WI); Berrien, Ottawa, Grand Traverse (MI); Lake, Porter (IN) County, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana

Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake located entirely within the United States borders, shared by Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Joined to Lake Huron at the Straits of Mackinac, it is hydrologically part of the same water body. Its southern shores anchor the Chicago metropolitan skyline, while its eastern and northern shores boast towering coastal sand dunes and historic resort ports.

Lake and Peninsula Borough County, Alaska

Lake Clark is a magnificent 42-mile-long glacial lake situated at the headwaters of Bristol Bay in southwest Alaska. Encased by the rugged Chigmit Mountains within Lake Clark National Park & Preserve, where the Alaska Range meets the Aleutian Range, the lake receives glacial runoff giving it a striking milky-turquoise coloration. It is one of the world’s vital spawning nurseries for wild sockeye salmon.

Niagara, Orleans, Monroe, Wayne, Cayuga, Oswego, Jefferson County, New York

Lake Ontario is the easternmost of the Great Lakes and the lowest in elevation, receiving the entire discharge of the upstream Great Lakes via the Niagara River and Niagara Falls. It drains into the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence River. Renowned for world-class trophy King (Chinook) Salmon fisheries and scenic coastal bluffs like Chimney Bluffs State Park.

Alpena, Alcona, Iosco, Arenac, Bay, Huron, Sanilac, St. Clair, Cheboygan, Presque Isle County, Michigan

Lake Huron is the second-largest Great Lake by surface area and contains Manitoulin Island, the world’s largest freshwater island. With expansive Saginaw Bay and the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary (the "Shipwreck Century"), Lake Huron is famous for historic maritime heritage, clear turquoise bays, and world-class salmon and walleye fisheries.

Clallam County, Washington

Lake Crescent is a pristine, deep glacial lake located in the northern foothills of the Olympic Mountains inside Olympic National Park in Washington. Famous for its jaw-dropping crystal clarity and iridescent blue color caused by a lack of nitrogen, the lake reaches 624 feet deep and is home to two endemic trout varieties: the Beardslee trout and the Crescenti cutthroat trout.

Kane, San Juan, Garfield (UT), Coconino (AZ) County, Utah

Lake Powell is an immense man-made reservoir on the Colorado River in Utah and northern Arizona, created by the flooding of Glen Canyon behind Glen Canyon Dam. With nearly 2,000 miles of winding canyon shoreline, it is celebrated for towering red Navajo sandstone cliffs, side slot canyons, houseboating, and natural arches including Rainbow Bridge National Monument.

Clark (NV), Mohave (AZ) County, Nevada

Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States in terms of water capacity, formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River. Situated 24 miles east of Las Vegas across Nevada and Arizona, the lake supplies critical water to over 25 million people across Nevada, California, Arizona, and northern Mexico, while serving as the center of Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

Shasta County, California

Lake Shasta (Shasta Lake) is the largest water reservoir in California, formed by Shasta Dam on the Sacramento River in northern California. With four distinct mountain river arms (Sacramento, McCloud, Pit, and Squaw Creek) and 365 miles of red-clay pine-clad shoreline, Lake Shasta is celebrated as the "Houseboating Capital of the World," featuring cavern tours, panoramic views of snow-capped Mount Shasta, and exceptional multi-species trout and bass fishing.

Teton, Park County, Wyoming

Yellowstone Lake is the largest high-elevation lake (above 7,000 feet) in North America, situated in the heart of Yellowstone National Park. The lake sits above the Yellowstone Caldera, with underwater hydrothermal geysers and fumaroles venting boiling mineral water directly into its frigid depths. It provides critical habitat for native Yellowstone cutthroat trout, grizzly bears, and bald eagles.

Chittenden, Franklin, Grand Isle, Addison, Rutland (VT), Clinton, Essex (NY) County, Vermont

Lake Champlain is a major natural freshwater lake situated primarily between Vermont and New York, with its northern tip extending into Quebec, Canada. Cradled between the Green Mountains to the east and the Adirondack Mountains to the west, Lake Champlain contains more than 70 islands and is celebrated for Revolutionary War naval history, scenic ferry crossings, and championship bass tournaments.

Lake, Flathead County, Montana

Flathead Lake is the largest natural freshwater lake by surface area west of the Mississippi River in the contiguous United States (slightly larger than Lake Tahoe in surface area, though shallower). Framed by the Mission Mountains to the east and the Salish Mountains to the west, Flathead Lake is renowned for its crystalline water clarity, Wild Horse Island State Park (home to wild horses and bighorn sheep), and Flathead sweet cherry orchards along the shore.

Gunnison County, Colorado

Blue Mesa Reservoir is Colorado's largest body of water by surface area, stretching 20 miles along the Gunnison River within the spectacular Curecanti National Recreation Area. Impounded by Blue Mesa Dam in 1966, this high-elevation alpine reservoir features dramatic granite spires, pristine mountain vistas, and hosts the largest kokanee salmon fishery in the United States along with record-breaking lake trout.

Nicholas County, West Virginia

Summersville Lake is the largest lake in West Virginia, impounded by Summersville Dam (the second-largest rock-fill dam in the Eastern US) on the Gauley River. Dubbed "The Little Bahamas of the East" due to its stunning turquoise clarity and sheer 100-foot sandstone cliffs, the lake is a premier inland scuba diving destination, rock climbing haven, and state park.

Bedford, Franklin, Pittsylvania County, Virginia

Smith Mountain Lake, celebrated as the "Jewel of the Blue Ridge Mountains," is the second-largest freshwater lake in Virginia, spanning over 20,000 acres and 500 miles of shoreline on the Roanoke River. Impounded in 1963 by the Appalachian Power Company, the reservoir is renowned for its panoramic mountain vistas, pristine deep water, luxury waterfront homes, and a nationally acclaimed trophy striped bass fishery.

Piscataquis, Somerset County, Maine

Moosehead Lake is the largest freshwater lake in Maine and the largest mountain lake in the eastern United States, covering over 75,000 acres in the remote Maine North Woods. Drained by the Kennebec River and framed by the dramatic precipice of Mount Kineo (rising 700 feet straight out of the water), Moosehead is a legendary wilderness destination celebrated for wild landlocked Atlantic salmon, native brook trout, and thriving moose populations.

Lucas, Ottawa, Erie, Lorain, Cuyahoga, Lake, Ashtabula County, Ohio

Lake Erie is the shallowest, warmest, and most biologically productive of the North American Great Lakes. Famous as the "Walleye Capital of the World," Lake Erie supports massive recreational and commercial fisheries. Its islands—including South Bass Island (Put-in-Bay) and Kelleys Island—are celebrated warm-weather vacation hotspots.

Anderson, Campbell, Claiborne, Grainger, Union County, Tennessee

Norris Lake is a premier deep-water reservoir in eastern Tennessee, nestled in the foothills of the Cumberland and Great Smoky Mountains. Built between 1933 and 1936 as the very first major project of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) following the construction of Norris Dam on the Clinch River, Norris Lake boasts 809 miles of clean mountain shoreline, crystal-clear blue waters, and over 20 full-service marinas.

Travis, Burnet County, Texas

Lake Travis is the crown jewel of the Texas Highland Lakes chain on the Colorado River northwest of Austin. Formed in 1942 following the construction of Mansfield Dam by the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), Lake Travis is famous for dramatic limestone cliffs, deep turquoise waters, Devil's Cove party basin, and world-class sailing, with official hydrologic gauges closely tracked throughout Texas.

Rich (UT), Bear Lake (ID) County, Utah

Bear Lake is an ancient freshwater lake straddling the border between northern Utah and southeastern Idaho. Often called the "Caribbean of the Rockies" for its astonishing intense turquoise-blue color (caused by microscopic suspended calcium carbonate crystals), Bear Lake is over 250,000 years old and is home to four endemic fish species found nowhere else on planet Earth.

Hughes, Stanley, Sully, Potter, Walworth, Campbell, Corson, Dewey (SD), Emmons, Morton, Sioux (ND) County, South Dakota

Lake Oahe is the fourth-largest man-made reservoir in the United States, beginning just north of Pierre, South Dakota, behind Oahe Dam and extending 231 miles north into North Dakota. Renowned for its rugged prairie cliffs, native grasslands, and world-class walleye, smallmouth bass, and northern pike populations, Lake Oahe offers pristine wilderness boating.

Garland, Montgomery County, Arkansas

Lake Ouachita is the largest lake located entirely within Arkansas, created by Blakely Mountain Dam on the Ouachita River. Completely surrounded by the lush Ouachita National Forest, the reservoir has virtually no commercial shoreline development, preserving an undisturbed wilderness character with over 200 uninhabited islands, crystal clear diving waters, and world-class striped bass fishing.

Russell, Wayne, Clinton, Pulaski, McCreary, Laurel County, Kentucky

Lake Cumberland is a massive reservoir on the Cumberland River in southern Kentucky, created by Wolf Creek Dam. Globally acclaimed as the "Houseboating Capital of the World," Lake Cumberland holds the highest concentration of recreational houseboats in the United States, surrounded by limestone bluffs and secluded deep-water coves.

Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania

Raystown Lake is the largest lake located entirely within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, encompassing 8,300 acres of crystalline water and 118 miles of undeveloped shoreline winding through the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians. Completed in 1973 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Baltimore District on the Raystown Branch of the Juniata River, the lake is free of private docks along its shores, preserving a pristine natural wilderness famous for giant striped bass and world-class Allegrippis mountain bike trails.

Warren, Washington, Essex County, New York

Lake George, renowned as the "Queen of American Lakes," is a 32-mile-long oligotrophic glacial lake situated at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York. Celebrated for pristine water so clean it is classified as Class AA-Special drinking water, Lake George contains 395 islands (many available for state-managed island camping) and has been a premier summer destination since the 19th century.

Anderson, Oconee, Pickens (SC), Hart, Franklin, Stephens (GA) County, South Carolina

Lake Hartwell is an expansive Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Savannah, Tugaloo, and Seneca Rivers, straddling the South Carolina-Georgia border. Encompassing 56,000 acres of water and 962 miles of shoreline, Lake Hartwell borders the Clemson University campus and is famous as a frequent host of the Bassmaster Classic world championship.

McLean, Mercer, Mountrail, Dunn, McKenzie, Williams County, North Dakota

Lake Sakakawea is the third-largest artificial reservoir in the United States by surface area (382,000 acres) and second-largest by water volume, created by Garrison Dam on the Missouri River. Stretching 178 miles through rugged North Dakota prairie badlands, the lake was named in honor of the Shoshone woman Sakakawea who guided the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Belknap, Carroll County, New Hampshire

Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in New Hampshire and the third-largest in New England, nestled at the foothills of the White Mountains. Encompassing 264 islands and 288 miles of shoreline, the lake’s Native American name translates to "Smile of the Great Spirit" or "Beautiful Water in High Place." It is a historic summer retreat famous for Mount Washington steamboat cruises, regattas, and classic boat shows.

Hall, Forsyth, Dawson, Gwinnett, Lumpkin County, Georgia

Lake Sidney Lanier is an impoundment on the Chattahoochee and Chestatee Rivers in northern Georgia, constructed and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Completed in 1956 following the construction of Buford Dam, the reservoir provides primary drinking water for metropolitan Atlanta, hosts millions of recreational visitors annually, and served as the rowing and canoe sprint venue during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games.

Franklin, Hampshire, Worcester County, Massachusetts

Quabbin Reservoir is the largest inland body of water in Massachusetts and one of the largest man-made public water supply reservoirs in the world. Built between 1930 and 1939 by impounding the Swift River and flooding four historic towns (Dana, Enfield, Greenwich, and Prescott), the pristine 25,000-acre reservoir stores 412 billion gallons of untreated drinking water for 3 million residents in Greater Boston, protected by untouched wilderness forests and strict conservation rules.

Camden, Miller, Morgan, Benton County, Missouri

Lake of the Ozarks is an enormous serpentine reservoir created by impounding the Osage River with Bagnell Dam in central Missouri. Nicknamed "The Magic Dragon" for its serpentine shape on aerial maps, the lake boasts over 1,150 miles of winding shoreline—more shoreline than the entire coast of California. It is one of the premier recreational powerboating, golfing, and vacation meccas in the Midwest.

Keith County, Nebraska

Lake McConaughy, nicknamed "Big Mac," is the largest reservoir in Nebraska, impounded by Kingsley Dam on the North Platte River. Stretching 22 miles long, the lake is celebrated across the Great Plains for brilliant white sand beaches, clear turquoise water, windsurfing, camping along the shore, and trophy walleye fishing.

Hennepin, Carver County, Minnesota

Lake Minnetonka is a sprawling 14,528-acre lake complex located just 15 miles southwest of Minneapolis. Formed by irregular kettle depressions left by the retreating Des Moines glacial lobe, Minnetonka features more than 23 named bays, numerous islands, and 125 miles of shoreline, making it the historic social, boating, and sailing heart of the Twin Cities.

Mecklenburg, Iredell, Lincoln, Catawba County, North Carolina

Lake Norman is the largest man-made body of fresh water in North Carolina, created between 1959 and 1964 by Duke Power with the construction of Cowans Ford Dam on the Catawba River. Often referred to as the "Inland Sea of North Carolina," Lake Norman is located 20 miles north of uptown Charlotte and is a vibrant hub for sailing clubs, luxury waterfront living, NASCAR driver homes, and competitive bass fishing.

Sabine, DeSoto (LA), Newton, Sabine, Shelby (TX) County, Louisiana

Toledo Bend Reservoir is the largest man-made body of water in the South and the fifth-largest reservoir by surface area in the United States, covering 185,000 acres along the Sabine River border between Louisiana and Texas. Voted the #1 Bass Lake in the Nation multiple times by Bassmaster Magazine, Toledo Bend boasts 1,200 miles of cypress-fringed shoreline and world-class lunker bass fisheries.

Grayson, Cooke (TX), Bryan, Marshall, Love, Johnston (OK) County, Texas

Lake Texoma is one of the largest reservoirs in the United States, formed by Denison Dam at the confluence of the Red River and Washita River on the Texas-Oklahoma border. Attracting over 6 million visitors annually, it is nationally revered as the "Striper Capital of the World," being one of the few inland reservoirs where striped bass reproduce naturally in the river headwaters.

Nevada County, California

French Lake is a historic high-elevation Sierra Nevada reservoir situated at 6,660 feet within the Tahoe National Forest on the USGS English Mountain 7.5-minute topographic quadrangle in Nevada County, California. Originally impounded in 1859 by the Milton Mining and Water Company for historic hydraulic gold mining in the South Yuba watershed, French Lake is impounded by the 100-foot-tall rockfill French Lake Dam across Canyon Creek. Today owned and managed by the Nevada Irrigation District (NID), this remote alpine jewel is framed by granite domes, lodgepole and red fir forests, and the towering 8,373-foot summit of English Mountain, offering an exceptional cold-water trout fishery, dispersed backcountry camping, and rugged 4WD/OHV trail access.

Mohave (AZ), San Bernardino (CA) County, Arizona

Lake Havasu is a vibrant desert reservoir formed by Parker Dam on the Colorado River along the Arizona-California border. Famous worldwide as the home of the relocated 1831 London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, the lake boasts warm turquoise waters, dramatic desert mountain backdrops, hidden slot canyon boat access, and premier sport boat and bass fishing events.

Fairfield, Litchfield County, Connecticut

Candlewood Lake is the largest lake in Connecticut and one of the earliest pumped-storage hydroelectric impoundments engineered in the United States, completed in 1928 by the Connecticut Light & Power Company. Nestled in the rolling Litchfield Hills, Candlewood spans five scenic New England towns (Brookfield, Danbury, New Fairfield, New Milford, and Sherman) and is widely ranked among the premier bass fishing destinations in the Northeast.

McIntosh, Pittsburg, Haskell, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma

Lake Eufaula is the largest lake located entirely within the state of Oklahoma, boasting an astounding 102,200 surface acres and over 800 miles of rugged shoreline on the Canadian River. Built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and dedicated in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson, Lake Eufaula is celebrated as the "Gentle Giant of Oklahoma," offering endless sandy beaches, hidden coves, and world-class crappie and largemouth bass fishing.

Sierra County, New Mexico

Elephant Butte Reservoir is the largest body of water in New Mexico, created by Elephant Butte Dam on the Rio Grande. Named after an ancient volcanic core resembling an elephant rising from the lakebed, the reservoir provides warm water, sandy beaches, desert canyons, and boating recreation in southwestern New Mexico.

Kosciusko County, Indiana

Lake Wawasee is the largest natural freshwater lake located entirely within Indiana. Formed during the Wisconsin glacial retreat thousands of years ago, Wawasee is situated in northern Indiana's lake country near Syracuse. Famous for its sprawling sandbars, historic yacht club founded in 1935, and abundant weed beds that nurture trophy northern pike and largemouth bass, it is Indiana's premier natural recreational lake.

Marshall, Calloway, Livingston, Lyon, Trigg (KY), Henry, Benton, Decatur, Stewart (TN) County, Kentucky

Kentucky Lake is the largest artificial lake by surface area in the United States east of the Mississippi River (160,309 acres), formed by Kentucky Dam on the Tennessee River. Bordering the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area alongside Lake Barkley, the reservoir possesses 2,064 miles of shoreline and serves as a vital component of the inland waterway shipping network and premier crappie and bass fishery.

Garrett County, Maryland

Deep Creek Lake is the largest freshwater lake in Maryland, perched at an elevation of 2,462 feet in the Allegheny Mountains of Garrett County. Created in 1925 by the Youghiogheny Hydroelectric Company, Deep Creek Lake is a four-season mountain resort destination featuring alpine skiing at Wisp Resort in winter and world-class boating, wakeboarding, and walleye fishing in summer across 69 miles of indented shoreline.

Monroe, Brown County, Indiana

Lake Monroe (officially Monroe Lake) is the largest body of water in Indiana, spanning 10,750 acres across Monroe and Brown counties south of Bloomington. Constructed on Salt Creek by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1965, the reservoir provides drinking water to Bloomington, borders the sprawling Hoosier National Forest, and is celebrated for serene coves, bald eagle nesting sites, and premier boating.

Geary, Clay County, Kansas

Milford Lake, officially Milford Reservoir, is the largest lake in Kansas by surface area, covering nearly 16,000 acres with 163 miles of shoreline along the Republican River. Nicknamed the "Fishing Capital of Kansas," Milford is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Kansas City District and is renowned nationwide for its giant blue catfish (including state record catches over 100 pounds), smallmouth bass, and sprawling state park amenities.

Marshall, Jackson County, Alabama

Lake Guntersville is Alabama's largest lake, stretching 75 miles along the Tennessee River from Nickajack Dam in Tennessee to Guntersville Dam in Alabama. Widely hailed by anglers as the premier largemouth bass fishery in the Southeastern United States, Guntersville features expansive hydrilla and milfoil grass flats, scenic Appalachian foothill bluffs, and wintering bald eagles.

Providence County, Rhode Island

Scituate Reservoir is the largest inland body of water in Rhode Island, covering 3,390 acres across the rural town of Scituate and surrounding Providence County. Created between 1915 and 1926 following the construction of the Gainer Memorial Dam on the Pawtuxet River, the reservoir supplies drinking water to more than 60 percent of Rhode Island's population. Surrounded by 13,000 acres of protected pine and deciduous watershed forests, it forms the ecological heart of the state.

Morris, Sussex County, New Jersey

Lake Hopatcong is the largest freshwater lake in New Jersey, spanning 2,500 acres across Morris and Sussex counties in the northern highlands. Originally created by retreating glaciers and later dammed in the 18th and 19th centuries to supply water to the historic Morris Canal, Lake Hopatcong blossomed into a storied Gilded Age resort destination and remains New Jersey's premier lake for year-round boating, fishing, and lakeside dining.

Marion County, Iowa

Lake Red Rock is the largest reservoir and water body in Iowa, formed by the Red Rock Dam on the Des Moines River. Managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Rock Island District, this massive reservoir spans over 15,000 acres at conservation pool (and over 65,000 acres during flood control operations). It features the iconic Mile-Long Bridge, extensive waterbird flyways, white pelican migrations, and the Volksweg paved recreation trail.

Mille Lacs, Aitkin, Crow Wing County, Minnesota

Lake Mille Lacs is the second-largest inland lake in Minnesota (after Red Lake), covering over 200 square miles (132,516 acres). Translating to "Thousand Lakes" in French, Mille Lacs is internationally famous for its exceptional smallmouth bass fishery, premier winter ice-fishing village culture (thousands of heated ice houses on the frozen lake), and walleye heritage.

Madison, Rankin County, Mississippi

Ross Barnett Reservoir, known across Mississippi simply as "The Rez," is a 33,000-acre impoundment of the Pearl River located northeast of Jackson. Completed in 1965 and managed by the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District, the reservoir serves as the primary drinking water source for the capital city, borders the scenic Natchez Trace Parkway, and offers top-tier largemouth bass, crappie, and tournament sailing waters.

Salt Lake, Davis, Weber, Box Elder, Tooele County, Utah

The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere and the eighth-largest terminal lake in the world. A remnant of prehistoric Lake Bonneville, which covered much of western Utah tens of thousands of years ago, the lake has no outlet. Because water escapes only through evaporation, salts and dissolved minerals concentrate, creating salinity levels far exceeding typical seawater.

Dickinson County, Iowa

Spirit Lake (historically known as Mini-Wakan by the Dakota Sioux) is the largest natural freshwater lake in Iowa, anchoring the famous Iowa Great Lakes region in northwestern Dickinson County near the Minnesota border. Formed by glacial scour during the late Pleistocene, Spirit Lake is world-renowned for its trophy yellow perch, walleye, and muskie fisheries, along with clean sandbars and classic midwestern resort heritage.

Winnebago, Calumet, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin

Lake Winnebago is the largest inland lake in Wisconsin, covering roughly 215 square miles (137,708 acres). A remnant of glacial Lake Oshkosh formed roughly 12,000 years ago, it is relatively shallow with an average depth of 15 feet. Lake Winnebago hosts the largest self-sustaining population of lake sturgeon in North America and is famous for its historic winter sturgeon spearing season on the ice.

Lake, Obion County, Tennessee

Reelfoot Lake is Tennessee's only large natural freshwater lake, uniquely created during the violent 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes when the Mississippi River flowed backward and flooded sunken cypress forests. Situated in northwestern Tennessee, Reelfoot is a National Natural Landmark famous for submerged cypress knees, massive winter bald eagle populations, and some of the finest bluegill and crappie fishing in North America.

Palm Beach, Martin, Glades, Hendry, Okeechobee County, Florida

Lake Okeechobee, locally nicknamed "The Big O," is the second-largest natural freshwater lake contained entirely within the contiguous 48 states, spanning roughly 730 square miles. Encircled by the 143-mile Herbert Hoover Dike built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lake Okeechobee forms the liquid heart of South Florida's ecosystem and is renowned for trophy largemouth bass fishing in vast marsh reed beds.

New Castle County, Delaware

Lums Pond is Delaware's largest freshwater body of water, situated within Lums Pond State Park near Bear and Kirkwood. Originally built as an impounded millpond on St. Georges Creek during the early 19th century and later repurposed to supply water to the Chesapeake & Delaware (C&D) Canal, this picturesque lake is surrounded by hardwood forests, multi-use hiking loops, and premier flatwater canoeing and kayaking waters.

Hawaii County, Hawaii

Lake Waiau is a high-altitude alpine crater lake perched near the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii at an elevation of 13,020 feet (3,968 meters), making it one of the highest lakes in the United States and the highest in the Pacific Basin. Nestled within Puʻu Waiau cinder cone and sealed from draining into porous volcanic rock by underlying permafrost, Lake Waiau is revered in Native Hawaiian tradition as sacred to the snow goddess Poliahu and water goddess Waiau.