Slim Lake under flat overcast, dark open water running to a low wooded shore

Updated August 2026 · Top 50 of 892 lakes with a surveyed depth

Deepest Lakes in Nova Scotia

Mapped and ranked below: the 50 deepest of 892 Nova Scotia lakes with a surveyed maximum depth.

Map · 50 ranked lakesTap a pin for its lakeTap a pin for the lake's page

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Nutrient and algae readings on recordNo reading on record#1 in this rankingPins are this ranking's lakes at their surveyed locations.

Top 50 Deepest Lakes in Nova Scotia (by max depth)

#	Lake	County	Max depth	Mean depth	Surface area
1	Major Lake	Halifax	213 ft	60 ft	848 ac
2	Lochaber Lake	Antigonish	172 ft	72 ft	759 ac
3	Charlotte Lake	Halifax	168 ft	—	—
4	Paces Lake	Halifax	167 ft	45 ft	748 ac
5	Black Lake	Cumberland	165 ft	41 ft	117 ac
6	Caribou Lake	Lunenburg	164 ft	67 ft	677 ac
7	Shubenacadie Grand Lake	Halifax	148 ft	54 ft	—
8	Timber Lake	Lunenburg	115 ft	36 ft	835 ac
9	Panuke Lake	Hants	115 ft	—	—
10	Dollar Lake	Halifax	112 ft	38 ft	532 ac
11	Vickery Lake	Cumberland	112 ft	3 ft	21 ac
12	Folly Lake	Colchester	110 ft	—	195 ac
13	Cockscomb Lake	Hants	108 ft	38 ft	360 ac
14	Soldier Lake	Halifax	102 ft	23 ft	469 ac
15	Skudiak Lake	Shelburne	102 ft	27 ft	237 ac
16	Blacketts Lake	Cape Breton	98 ft	31 ft	425 ac
17	Long Lake	Halifax	98 ft	24 ft	392 ac
18	Tangier Grand Lake	Halifax	98 ft	24 ft	1,940 ac
19	O'Law Second Lake	Inverness	98 ft	31 ft	67 ac
20	Macpherson Lake	Guysborough	95 ft	33 ft	192 ac
21	Lochiel Lake	Guysborough	92 ft	28 ft	319 ac
22	William Lake	Halifax	92 ft	38 ft	838 ac
23	Charles Lake	Halifax	92 ft	30 ft	281 ac
24	Conrod Lake	Halifax	90 ft	20 ft	295 ac
25	Sawler Lake	Lunenburg	89 ft	16 ft	131 ac
26	Loch Katrine	Antigonish	89 ft	33 ft	277 ac
27	Long Lake	Cape Breton	89 ft	24 ft	68 ac
28	Pringle Lake	Guysborough	85 ft	32 ft	155 ac
29	Molega Lake	Queens	85 ft	16 ft	—
30	Kearney Lake	Halifax	85 ft	30 ft	158 ac
31	Five Mile Lake	Hants	85 ft	15 ft	1,249 ac
32	Anderson Lake	Halifax	85 ft	12 ft	153 ac
33	Dauphinees Mill Lake	Lunenburg	82 ft	17 ft	709 ac
34	Third Lake	Halifax	80 ft	28 ft	204 ac
35	Uist Lake	Richmond	79 ft	—	692 ac
36	Millet Lake	Lunenburg	76 ft	32 ft	170 ac
37	First Lake	Halifax	76 ft	19 ft	200 ac
38	Gillies Lake	Cape Breton	76 ft	32 ft	112 ac
39	Black Rattle Lake	Queens	76 ft	21 ft	205 ac
40	Hart Lake	Colchester	75 ft	26 ft	98 ac
41	French Clearwater Lake	Yarmouth	74 ft	23 ft	294 ac
42	Sloans Lake	Yarmouth	72 ft	22 ft	387 ac
43	Hatchet Lake	Halifax	72 ft	24 ft	169 ac
44	Coon Lake	Halifax	72 ft	25 ft	47 ac
45	Williams Lake	Halifax	66 ft	8 ft	84 ac
46	Alma Lake	Halifax	66 ft	4 ft	1,087 ac
47	Ocean Lake	Guysborough	66 ft	22 ft	1,050 ac
48	Glen Ponds	Inverness	66 ft	19 ft	5 ac
49	Petpeswick Lake	Halifax	66 ft	16 ft	635 ac
50	Fraser'S Lake	Halifax	66 ft	27 ft	175 ac

Sources and method

Max and mean depth: state natural-resources agency lake surveys and USACE National Inventory of Dams reservoir records. Surveyed depths only; modeled estimates are never ranked. A dash means the survey did not record a mean.
Readings: clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a from the agency's own sampling, shown as reported. Depth is not a water-quality reading.
Map pins: the 50 table rows with surveyed coordinates. No other lakes are plotted.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the deepest lake in Nova Scotia?

Of the Nova Scotia lakes with a surveyed maximum depth, Major Lake in Halifax County is the deepest at 213.3 ft.

How are lake depths measured?

Maximum depth is the deepest point at full-pool water level, from state agency bathymetric surveys and, for reservoirs, dam-design records. The ranking uses surveyed depths only, never modeled estimates. Everyday water level can sit below the surveyed figure during drawdowns or drought. Mean depth, the average across the whole basin, is listed where a survey recorded it.

Why are some Nova Scotia lakes so much deeper than others?

Lake depth depends on how the lake formed. Glacial lakes (common in MN, WI, MI, NY) were carved by ice sheets and can exceed 200 ft. Reservoir lakes (common in IA, MO, OK, KS) are shaped by river valley depth at the dam site — typically 50-150 ft at the dam, much shallower upstream. Flooded mine pits can be deeper still. Oxbow lakes and pothole lakes formed by river meandering or glacial pitting tend to be shallower, usually under 30 ft.

Does deeper mean cleaner?

Not directly, but deeper lakes tend to be cleaner on average. Depth creates thermal stratification in summer, isolating cold deep water from surface algal blooms. Deep lakes also resist nutrient resuspension from wind-driven sediment mixing. That said, many deep lakes still suffer from impairment if the watershed loads heavy phosphorus — each lake's page carries its nutrient readings and EPA impairment status.

What's the average depth of Nova Scotia lakes in this ranking?

Across the 50 deepest Nova Scotia lakes, the average maximum depth is 98 ft and the median is 89 ft (Loch Katrine). This is the top of 892 lakes with a surveyed depth, so it is biased toward deep lakes; the typical Nova Scotia lake is shallower.

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