Lake Tahoe Fun Facts

Here are some fun facts that we gathered from our trips to Tahoe and would like to share. This beautiful place holds a very special place in our hearts.

Lake Tahoe fun facts

• Lake Tahoe is the word’s second largest alpine lake, and the second-largest lake in North America. It is 21.6 miles long, and 12.2 miles wide.
•  Lake Tahoe’s elevation is 6,228 feet above sea level.
• It’s average depth is 989 feet, and its deepest known point is a remarkable 1,645 feet. Lake Tahoe is 99.1% pure, and from the surface one is able to see objects at a depth of 100 feet.
• There is enough water in Lake Tahoe to cover the state of California with 14.5 inches of water.
• 1,400,000 tons of water evaporate from the lake every day, but this only lowers the lake level 1/10 of an inch.
• Average days of sunshine are 307, and this is great way for enjoying the six campgrounds, eleven parks and beaches around the lake.
• Surface temperature of the lake is 50 F in winter and 68F in summer. About 750 feet below the surface, the water temperature is a chilly 39.2F to 41.5F.
• Two-thirds of the lake lies within California and 29 percent is in El Dorado County.
• It is 72 miles around Lake Tahoe and is approximately a two-hour drive.
• Lake Tahoe receives an average annual snowfall of 215 inches, and the upper elevations may receive 300 to 500 inches.
• Lake Tahoe has its share of below freezing days and nights, but the Lake itself has never frozen over. On occasion, Emerald Bay has been covered with a layer of ice, and ice forms in cold protected inlets. However, Lake Tahoe’s great depth and huge volume of water always in motion keep it from becoming the world’s largest ice rink.
• In 1960 winter Olympics at Squaw Valley put Lake Tahoe firmly on the map as the skiing center of the western United States.
• There are two people known to have swam across the lake. The first woman was Earline Christopherson in 1962. She swam this in 13 hours and 37 minutes and she was only 16 years old at the time. Fred Rogers from South San Francisco accomplished this feat in 1955.
• Lake Tahoe is not a crater lake. It was formed by movement of the Earth’s crust and is believed to have been a small lake or river originally. Volcanic activity did play a part in its formation by sealing both ends of the valley. There are 63 streams that flow into Lake Tahoe, and only one, the Truckee River, that flows out eastward into Pyramid Lake.  The Upper Truckee River is the main source that feeds the lake.
• The two highest peaks around Lake Tahoe are Mt. Tallac at 9,735 feet and free peak at 10,881 feet. Mt. Tallac is famous for its “Snow Cross” marking.
• In 1844 explorers John Fremont and Kit Carson discovered Lake Tahoe. In the summer, Lake Tahoe Basin was a gathering place for three bands of peaceful Washoe Indians. The lake held spiritual meaning for the tribe and many sacred ceremonies were held along the southern shores.
• A trip west on Highway 89 will bring you to “Vikingsholm” in Emerald Bay, Heiress Mrs. Lora Josephine Moore Knight built this beautiful home in 1928, and furnished it with pieces from Norway, Finland and Sweden. Of special interest is the single-room “Tea House” built on the island in the middle of Emerald Bay where Mrs Knight would take her guests by boat for afternoon Tea.
• Lake Tahoe has had many names (Bonpland, Mountain Lake, Fremont’s Lake, Lake Bigler, and Big Truckee Lake), but was officially named Lake Tahoe in 1945, which means “Big water” in Washoe Indian language.
• Today, Lake Tahoe continues to offer visitors a bit of many historic eras. While hotels, casinos and ski resorts draw millions of guest each year, the main attraction continues to be the quiet beauty of the sierras and timeless inspiration of the lake itself, little changed from the days of the Washoe Indians. Surface temperature of the lake is 50 F in winter and 68F in summer. About 750 feet below the surface, the water temperature is a chilly 39.2F to 41.5F. Two-thirds of the lake lies within California and 29 percent is in El Dorado County. It is 72 miles around Lake Tahoe and is approximately a two-hour drive.