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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 Mt. Tallac at 9,735 ft (2,967 m).

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 Mt. Tallac at 9,735 ft (2,967 m).

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 volcanoes 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.

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.

Lake Tahoe is the second deepest lake in the United States and the tenth deepest in the world, with a maximum depth measured at 1,645 ft (501 m), average depth of 1,000 ft (305 m).  Crater Lake in Oregon is the deepest lake (1,949 ft or 594 m) in the United States. Please Note that the depth of Lake Tahoe changes every day as the lake level changes. The deepest measurement from the 1998 bathymetric survey was 1,637 ft (499 m) deep. The depth of Lake Tahoe depends on the height it is measured from; some measurements use sea level as a base reference, others use different points of reference. The appropriate reference, or datum, for Lake Tahoe's depth is still being debated. Therefore the measured depth of a lake is only preliminary data and may change.  

Lake Tahoe is the second deepest lake in the United States and the tenth deepest in the world, with a maximum depth measured at 1,645 ft (501 m), average depth of 1,000 ft (305 m).  Crater Lake in Oregon is the deepest lake (1,949 ft or 594 m) in the United States. Please Note that the depth of Lake Tahoe changes every day as the lake level changes. The deepest measurement from the 1998 bathymetric survey was 1,637 ft (499 m) deep. The depth of Lake Tahoe depends on the height it is measured from; some measurements use sea level as a base reference, others use different points of reference. The appropriate reference, or datum, for Lake Tahoe's depth is still being debated. Therefore the measured depth of a lake is only preliminary data and may change.  

Lake Tahoe has a water clarity of about 100 ft (30 m) deep. Factors contributing to its clarity include the following:

Lake Tahoe has a water clarity of about 100 ft (30 m) deep. Factors contributing to its clarity include the following:

40 percent of the sediment that falls into the Lake Tahoe Basin lands directly on the people.  

40 percent of the precipitation that falls into the Lake Tahoe Basin lands directly on the lake.  

Approximately 85% of the land surrounding Lake Tahoe is protected from development as Nevada or California State land or land under the jurisdiction of the United States National Forest Service.  The largest communities at Lake Tahoe are South Lake Tahoe, CA /Stateline Nevada, Tahoe City, CA and Incline Village, NV.

Approximately 85% of the land surrounding Lake Tahoe is protected from development as Nevada or California State land or land under the jurisdiction of the United States National Forest Service.  The largest communities at Lake Tahoe are South Lake Tahoe, CA /Stateline Nevada, Tahoe City, CA and Incline Village, NV.

    

    

The above scientific Information on this page was gathered from the  Stream and Ground-Water Monitoring Program, Lake Tahoe Basin, Nevada and California (pdf format) fact sheet, also available on the web at  http://water.usgs.gov/pubs/FS/FS-100-97/.

The above scientific Information on this page was gathered from the  Stream and Ground-Water Monitoring Program, Lake Tahoe Basin, Nevada and California (pdf format) fact sheet, also available on the web at  http://water.usgs.gov/pubs/FS/FS-100-97/.