Lake Tahoe & Incline Village Information
Mortgages
David Colarchick
Steve Peterson
Gene Williams
Schools
Incline Village Schools
Sierra Nevada College
University of Nevada, Reno
Truckee Meadows Community College
Government / Chambers of Commerce
Incline Village General Improvement District Tahoe Douglas Chamber
North Lake Tahoe Resort Association
Incline Village / Crystal Bay Visitors Bureau
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) Washoe Co. Treasurer—Tax Info
Miscellaneous
Incline Village Churches
Lake Tahoe Casinos
Lake Tahoe Ski Resorts
Incline Village Golf Courses
Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival
Incline Village Weather
Interesting Facts about Lake Tahoe
How large is Lake Tahoe?
Lake Tahoe is about 22 miles long and l2 miles wide with 72 miles of shoreline. The surface area covers 191 square miles. Lake Tahoe is the third deepest lake in North America and the tenth deepest in the world. Its greatest measured depth is 1,645 feet and averages 1,000 feet. (In North America, Crater Lake in Oregon at 1,930 feet and the Great Slave Lake in Canada at 2,010 feet are deeper.) The floor of the basin is near the 4,580 foot elevation, lower than the surface of the Carson Valley to the east! Lake Tahoe is two-thirds in the state of California and one-third in the state of Nevada.
Mount Tallac 9,734 feet in elevation is the highest peak rising from the shoreline in the Tahoe Basin. The highest point in the basin is Freel Peak at 10,881 feet. Lake Tahoe has average surface elevation is 6,225 feet above sea level, making it the highest lake of its size in the United States. Its exact elevation, controlled by a dam in Tahoe City, depends on how much water flows in from the mountains and how much is let out into the Truckee River.
Unlike most bodies of water in North America, Lake Tahoe’s water does not eventually flow into the ocean. The Truckee River, its only outlet, flows east through Reno and into Pyramid Lake in Nevada. Sixty three streams flow into Lake Tahoe.
How cold is the water?
The water temperature near the surface generally cools to 40 F to 50 F (4-1/2 C to 10 C during February and March, and warms to 65 F to 70 F (18 C to 21 C) August and September. Below 600-700 foot depths, the water temperature remains a constant 39 F (40 C).
How much water is in Lake Tahoe?
The water in Lake Tahoe could cover a flat area the size of California by 14 inches. This is also enough to supply everyone in the United States with 50 gallons of water per day for 5 years. And believe it or not, the amount of water that evaporates from the surface of Lake Tahoe every year could supply a city the size of Los Angeles for 5 years.
Why is the Lake so clear and they say not?
The lake was so clear that objects could be seen up to depths of 120 feet just a few years back. One reason the lake is so clear is that 40% of the precipitation falling into the Lake Tahoe Basin, lands directly on the lake. The remaining precipitation drains through the decomposed granitic soils found in marshes and meadows where cattle graze, creating a good filtering system through the cow patties. These soils used to be relatively sterile, therefore water filtered through them entering the lake relatively pure. Another contributing factor is the exportation of all sewage from the Lake Tahoe Basin. Although Lake Tahoe is going through a natural aging process (succession), filling up with sediments like any other lake, additional amounts are washing into the lake at an alarming rate as slopes are cleared for construction, roads are salted and sanded heavily so people can drive faster in the winter.
Each of these sediment particles carries nutrients which stimulate algae growth that will eventually cloud the famous clarity of the lake. Development and fertilization of marshes and stream zones, such as the Tahoe Keys, Lake Tahoe Airport, Areas along the South Upper Truckee River and grazing cattle in the basin prevents filtration of incoming water from the mountains and allows more sedimentation to occur.
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