American Lake
Pierce County, WashingtonView mapDirections
Washington Ecology publishes the water-quality measurements for American Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Dioxins
- 33 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
American Lake in Pierce County, Washington has water-quality measurements published by Washington Ecology, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 19.7 ft visibility.
American Lake is a lake in Pierce County, Washington with an estimated average depth of about 33 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 2 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, WA Ecology, last sampled 2018-07-15. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
American Lake has 2 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around American Lake, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.
What American Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water19.7 ft of visibility
- Boat launch2 documented ramps
Swimming conditions
No readingBacteria advisory
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. American Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for dioxins, nuisance exotic species, pathogens (E. coli, fecal), pesticides, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether American Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Washington State Department of Ecology and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for American Lake
These are the measurements Washington Ecology publishes for American Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Crystal clear, you can see 19.7 ft down. TSI 34.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 19.7ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 34 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about American Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~33 ft est.
Public access
Yes
Listed by Washington Ecology
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Washington has not published bathymetry for American Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
25 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
1,013 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
8.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
226 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
- American Lake North ParkPublic
- American LakePublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near American Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near American Lake in Pierce County, Washington — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near American Lake
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Fishing American Lake
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2012–2018).
Water clarity
Improving5 years
EPA Impairment Status
American Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2018 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life, Fish consumption, Recreation.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit WA17110019001225_001_001 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Pierce County
Frequently asked questions about American Lake
Where is American Lake?
- American Lake is a lake in Pierce County, Washington. Its water-quality measurements are published by Washington Ecology and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of American Lake?
- American Lake in Pierce County, Washington has water-quality measurements published by Washington Ecology, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 19.7 ft visibility.
Is American Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. American Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for dioxins, nuisance exotic species, pathogens (E. coli, fecal), pesticides, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is American Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers American Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 33 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Are there boat ramps on American Lake?
- American Lake has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include American Lake North Park, American Lake. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at American Lake?
- American Lake has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Washington's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
5 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2012–2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS5 samples · 2012–2018
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory