The water in the lake is exchanged every eight years, compared to the much deeper, therefore slower, Lake Tahoe, which exchanges every 700 years. The water is potable, and many homes along the shoreline run a pipe offshore to provide water during the winter when other water systems may be turned off. Visibility runs around 40–50 feet (10–15 m) under most conditions. The water quality is extremely good due to the lack of commercial development (including golf courses and their fertilizer-rich runoff), the universal use of sewers, and modern sediment retention techniques associated with new development.
Along other shores, the bottom may be hidden in as little as 100 feet (30 m) offshore. Due to the action of the glaciers that carved the lake, the northern end of the lake has a much more gradual depth change, and the bottom can be seen from the surface for a quarter-mile (400 m) offshore. The average depth of the lake is around 240 feet (72 m), and the bottom falls away rapidly as one moves away from the shorelines at the southern end. Stanford Sierra Camp on the calm waters of Fallen Leaf Lakeįallen Leaf is approximately 380 feet (116 m) deep at its deepest point, which is at the south end, east of the sheer face of Mount Tallac and north of Stanford Sierra Camp. Some of the homes on the west side of the lake have no road access and are accessed on foot or by boat. While it runs to within about three-quarters of a mile (1.2 km) of Fallen Leaf Road, the two roads do not connect. Glen Alpine Road begins at the bridge and runs for about two miles southwest to Glen Alpine Springs, one of the trailheads to the Desolation Wilderness Area.Ĭathedral Road also intersects State Route 89, and travels south to the houses on the west side of the lake. Francis of the Mountains, an Episcopalian chapel, and then across a concrete bridge spanning Glen Alpine Creek. The road winds around the south end of the lake, past St. There is little commercial development at the lake other than the tiny Fallen Leaf Marina and Store at the southern extremity of the lake. Emigrant Road connects to Fallen Leaf Road approximately three miles from SR 89, and provides access to houses above the lake on the eastern slope. It also connects to US 50/SR 89 via Sawmill Road.įallen Leaf Road continues south past privately owned homes following the lakeshore. Two miles south of State Route 89, Angora Road provides access to Angora Lookout, a Forest Service fire lookout on the east side of the lake and approximately 1,000 feet (300 m) above the lake's surface, and to Angora Lakes Resort. The road passes the Fallen Leaf Lake Campground, operated by the Forest Service, and then past privately owned meadows. The road runs generally to the south, is one lane wide and paved, and has turnouts to allow cars to pass each other. The road intersects the highway approximately half a mile (800 m) west of Camp Richardson, a resort and campground on the southern shore of Lake Tahoe. Like some areas where the Forest Service has leased land intermingled with private land, the two land types appear in a mosaic or checkerboard pattern.įallen Leaf Road is approximately 5 miles (8 km) long, and begins at State Route 89, which runs along the south shore of Lake Tahoe. Forest Service, and part of the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. The land surrounding the lake is privately owned, leased from the U.S. A terminal moraine is visible at the north end of the lake on the northeast edge.įallen Leaf Lake is located within the National Forest System lands managed by the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, adjacent to El Dorado County. If the glacier had continued instead of stopping, Fallen Leaf Lake would be a bay of Lake Tahoe, similar to nearby Emerald Bay. The lake was created by at least two glaciers that traveled northward down the Glen Alpine Valley.
It is approximately aligned north-to-south and oval in shape, measuring approximately 2.9 miles (4.6 km) on the long axis and 0.9 miles (1.4 km) on the short axis. 38★5′N 120☀4′W / 38.92°N 120.06°W / 38.92 -120.06įallen Leaf Lake is a mountain lake located in El Dorado County, California, near the California– Nevada state border, about one mile south west of the much larger Lake Tahoe.
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