America, the land of the free and the home of some of the most stunning natural landscapes in the world. Among its many geographical wonders are its beautiful lakes, each offering unique vistas and experiences. From the tranquil shores of Lake Tahoe to the vast expanse of the Great Lakes, these bodies of water have become beloved destinations for both locals and tourists alike. In this article, we will be exploring the most popular lakes in America, diving into their histories, unique features, and what makes them must-visit locations. So, whether you’re a nature enthusiast, an avid angler, or simply someone looking for your next vacation spot, join us as we embark on this exciting journey.
The most popular lakes in America are:
- The Great Lakes
- Lake Tahoe, CA
- Lake Havasu
- Lake Powell
- Caddo Lake
- Flathead Lake
- Lake Michigan
- Lake of the Ozarks
- Lake Champlain
- Great Salt Lake
- Lake George
- Lake Winnipesaukee
- Lake Okeechobee
- Big Bear Lake
The Great Lakes
Of the five Great Lakes, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior see the most tourism. Lakes Erie, Huron, and Ontario are quite impressive too! The Great Lakes include Niagara Falls on the Niagara River between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Hard core surfers spend icy winter days surfing on them because winter is the only season their waves rise high enough for surfing. Sunsets highlight the Great Lakes experience no matter what that is, from scuba diving to living on a houseboat, even in winter. The Great Lakes support Americans and Canadians with water and outdoor activities amid striking vistas from their stellar beaches to their 35,000 islands.
Lake Tahoe, CA
Lake Tahoe captivated Mark Twain in the 1880s, with its distinctly clear waters and surrounding terrain of the Carson Range on the east, the main Sierra Nevada crest on the west, and majestic pine trees. Its algae paint Lake Tahoe’s waters with cobalt blueness. It is the largest alpine lake in North America. It amply provides summer water sports and winter snow sports. Lake Tahoe is so popular that in 2023, officials are planning how much traffic should be allowed during peak season. Straddling California and Nevada, 15 million people visit the Lake Tahoe region each year.
Lake Havasu (Arizona / California)
Lake Havasu, on the Colorado River, forms a part of the Southern California/Central Arizona border. Anglers celebrate it as a top-rated large, small mouth, and striped bass fishing destination. Along with its famous London Bridge, Lake Havasu attracts nearly 1.5 million visitors annually. The climate is hottest in this desert paradise from June to September over pristine waters with 400 miles of shoreline and miles of hiking trails. Winter brings on ideal weather for exploring untouched natural desert beauty with lows in the 40-degree range. Expect a lot of noise during peak season because college students love to party at Lake Havasu. Local businesses cater to these students.
Lake Powell (Utah / Arizona)
Lake Powell stretches mostly across Utah’s southern border with Arizona for much of its 185 miles and 1,960 miles of shoreline. Imperial desert canyons flank Lake Powell with 96 major side canyons. Along with boaters, paddleboarders put this destination on their life’s-to-do lists to explore sublime and vividly colored sandstone side canyons, coves, and natural wonders leisurely. Lake Powell sweeps from the beginning of the Grand Canyon at Lees Ferry in Arizona, to the Orange Cliffs of Southern Utah in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which is bordered by the Canyonlands National Park. Lake Powell lies in the extremely remote Red Rock Desert, and visitors are advised to learn desert survival strategies before visiting Lake Powell or any desert lake.
Caddo Lake (Texas / Louisiana)
The hauntingly mysterious Caddo Lake lies on the northern border of Louisiana and Texas. Caddo Lake sustains a flooded cypress forest draped with Spanish moss standing in a paradisiacal playground of native marshland marvels. The Caddo Lake region boasts alligators, beavers, bobcats, eagles, frogs, owls, river otters, snakes, and waterfowl. In fact, this lake is home to 22 amphibians, over 220 species of birds, 93 kinds of fish, 46 reptiles, almost 190 species of trees and shrubs, 47 mammals, and over 20 mussel species. It is one of thirteen areas in the U.S. protected by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance. Don Henley, singer/songwriter for The Eagles, advocates for this precious region’s preservation.
Flathead Lake (Montana)
As one of the cleanest natural lakes on the globe, southern Flathead Lake lies within the boundary of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead Reservation (CSKT). There, visitors must buy a tribal recreational permit. These tribes established the CKST Bison Range with the federal government. Glacier National Park is only 49 minutes north. The Flathead Lake Biological Station (FLBS) is a University of Montana Center of Excellence station and one of the oldest active biological stations in the U.S., established in 1899. Flathead Lake witnesses between 350,000 to almost 500,000 visitors annually. Its climate allows for cherries tree orchards to thrive on its east shore and wine vineyards on its west shore.
Lake Michigan
Canada, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin share borders with Lake Michigan, which provides awe-inspiring natural experiences. Its diverse climate, wide variety of plant and animal species, over 130 bird species, and year-round fishing attract visitors from around the world. Tourists flock to Grand Traverse Bay, with its huge sand dunes at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore, Charlevoix, Petoskey and Harbor Springs, the Tunnel of Trees, the iconic Point Betsie Lighthouse, and Beaver Island, and so much more to explore. Bustling beach towns, sugar sand beaches, and wineries abound on Lake Michigan. The exciting cities of Chicago, Milwaukee, and Green Bay skirt Lake Michigan’s shores.
Lake of the Ozarks (Missouri)
Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks is stunning and rich in activities like airplane and helicopter tours, boat excursions, golf, horseback riding, shopping, spas, wineries, and ziplines. It winds like a snake with its 61,000 square miles through Central Missouri in the Ozark Mountains. Fishermen have caught piranhas in this lake, but they are not native. Anglers flood into Lake of the Ozarks to catch black, largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass, plus year-round catfish. It is a spelunker’s and kayaker’s dream haven, bulging with striking caves and stunning views on the shoreline and is a top scuba diving destination. Hundreds of burbling springs spout from the bountiful bluffs along Lake of the Ozarks’ shores and coves.
Lake Champlain (New York / Vermont)
Lake Champlain forms the northern New Hampshire/Vermont border, and the tip of its eastern arm ventures into Canada. Its region is proud of its oldest known fossil reef in the world, which is 450 to 480 million years old. Lake Champlain offers 71 islands, 587 miles of shoreline, an average depth of 64 feet and a maximum depth of 400 feet, and is 120-miles long. Over 90 species of fish call this lake home, and 318 species of birds soar over its waters. Visitors hike and paddle to highly productive fishing hotspots while observing wildlife. Tourists enjoy its surrounding Limestone Bluff Cedar-Pine Forest, emergent wetlands abundant with wildlife, and rare plants underneath the Green Mountains, Taconic Mountains, and Adirondack Mountains.
Great Salt Lake (Utah)
The world famous Great Salt Lake lies in Northern Utah and is home to winter and summer sports and recreation. The 1,000,000 to 100,000,000 bacteria per milliliter in its northern arm tint its area with purple or red hues. Swimmers find that this lake yields curative powers and can buy bottled lake water for improved health. Morton Salt operates a big plant near Great Salt Lake’s Salt Lake City. The region turns into a winter wonderland with snow-packed mountain ski resorts and its well-regarded lake effect snow. Visitors to the tune of 12.4 million in 2019 frolicked at Great Salt Lake by biking, bird watching, boating, fishing, hiking, riding horses, hunting, sledding, snow skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, swimming, and more amidst the Wasatch Mountains encircling its eastern and northern shores and the Oquirrh Mountains (pronounced “oaker”) to the west.
Lake George (New York)
Upstate New York displays the amazing Lake George at the southern end of the world-renowned Adirondack Park with some of the clearest and cleanest waters on earth. Over 90% of its watershed has stood the test of time as a natural forestland, with nearly half of the forested acreage publicly owned by New York State. Lake George is constitutionally protected as a forever-wild Forest Preserve, the highest available protection for land in the United States. Dozens of mountain streams feed Lake George, and over 170 islands dot the lake. Thomas Jefferson described Lake George as being, “without comparison, the most beautiful water I ever saw.” Over 500 tourism businesses operate there to serve its visitors. Lake George provides for tons of winter and summer sports excitement, including whitewater rafting, parasailing, and hot air ballooning in a summer and winter playground.
Lake Winnipesaukee (New Hampshire)
Lake Winnipesaukee rests in the southern foothills of New Hampshire’s White Mountains. Wooded shorelines flank its crystal clear, spring-fed waters, and public beaches ring around the lake. Small and largemouth bass, bluegill, landlocked salmon, brook, lake, and rainbow trout, white and yellow perch, and whitefish swim in Lake George, to the delight of anglers. Outdoor enthusiasts explore its forests, ponds, and trails by land, or float by the sights by boat around the lake and its island preserves. Charming and traditional New England towns stand ready with businesses that pamper visitors. Year-round activities and events captivate locals and tourists alike.
Lake Okeechobee (Florida)
To see Florida is to see Lake Okeechobee on the Caloosahatchee River that flows east to the Gulf of Mexico. This lake supports a natural habitat for fish, wading birds, and exuberant wildlife. People from all over the globe visit Lake Okeechobee as avid boating and recreation hounds and for year-round musical and sporting events and festivals. This lake lies just a few miles north of the northern border of Florida’s glorious Everglades that occupy its southern tip and leads to the highly esteemed Florida Keys. Superior largemouth bass and speckled perch attract anglers from all over the U.S. Approximately 30,000 alligators make their homes at Lake Okeechobee, and gators are granted their own hunting season there.
Big Bear Lake (California)
Gold mining at today’s Big Bear Lake region started in 1859 at Starvation Flat as Southern California’s (So Cal) largest gold rush site. The completion of the Rock Dam established Big Bear Lake in 1884 in northeastern San Bernardino National Forest. Cabin rentals dominate the tourism industry at Big Bear Lake. Most vacation rentals in Big Bear Lake feature fireplaces for chilly nights, but no AC. Its surrounding mountains offer some of the best snow skiing at nearby destinations in So Cal. A flourishing wildlife scene offers visitors to view whimsical coyotes, chipmunks, raccoons, and squirrels, but they also risk a chance to observe the lesser seen and more majestic animals like bobcats, gray foxes, and mountain lions. The Big Bear area no longer provides a habitat for the imposing grizzly bears that roamed in the 1800s.
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