20 of 223 Nevada lakes (9%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 13 carry a High or Significant hazard rating. The oldest matched dam dates to 1910.

Irrigation (13)Recreation (5)Fish and Wildlife Pond (2)

EPA-Impaired Lakes in Nevada

View all 29 impaired lakes →

29 of 223 Nevada lakes (13%) are officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the most recent EPA ATTAINS reporting cycle. 1 have an approved Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) restoration plan.

Metals (other than mercury) (19)Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen) (17)Mercury (12)Oxygen depletion (low DO) (12)Salinity / chlorides (10)Temperature (8)Turbidity (6)Toxic inorganics (5)

Nevada Fishing & Recreation

Licenses, regulations, records, and where to fish across Nevada.

Best Fishing Times

Solunar calendar & sun/moon timing per lake

Counties

All 16 Nevada counties, ranked by average lake water quality. Compare them against every county nationwide in the county rankings, browse the full directory of lakes, or pick a different state.

Cleanest Nevada Lakes

16 lakes16 lakes ranked on readings

#	Lake	County	Clarity	Trophic	Max Depth	Access
1	Comins Reservoir	White Pine	No recent samples	Oligotrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
2	Lake Tahoe	Douglas	No recent samples	Oligotrophic	No recent samples	✓ Public
3	Illipah Reservoir	White Pine	No recent samples	Mesotrophic	No recent samples	✓ Public
4	Rye Patch Reservoir	Pershing	No recent samples	Mesotrophic	No recent samples	✓ Public
5	Boulder Reservoir	Washoe	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
6	Onion Valley Reservoir @ Dam	Humboldt	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
7	Squaw Creek Reservoir	Washoe	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
8	Spooner Lake	Douglas	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
9	Walker Lake	Mineral	4.7 ft	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
10	Sheep Creek Lake	Elko	6.2 ft	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
11	Billy Shaw Lake	Elko	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
12	Mountain View Lake	Elko	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
13	Bilk Creek Reservoir	Humboldt	No recent samples	Eutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
14	Wall Canyon Reservoir	Washoe	No recent samples	Hypereutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
15	Wildhorse Reservoir	Elko	5.9 ft	Hypereutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded
16	Knott Creek Reservoir	Humboldt	No recent samples	Hypereutrophic	No recent samples	Not recorded

37 of the 223 Nevada lakes in this index carry a recent clarity, phosphorus or algae reading, spread over 16 counties. Those readings come from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, alongside federal programs and volunteer monitoring networks. The rest are listed for their size, depth and location, with no recent nutrient or algae sampling behind them.

By surface area the largest lake here is Lake Mead, at about 133,758 acres, and 53 of the lakes in this index cover more than 500 acres. Size is worth knowing before you go: a large deep basin buffers nutrient inputs by sheer volume, while a shallow one warms quickly and can turn over its whole water column in a single summer storm. White Pine has the lowest nutrient and algae readings on average. With only 16 counties in the state, the cross-county spread is narrower than the within-county spread for most lakes.

Lake Match

Which lake suits how you actually use one?

Six questions — swimming, fishing, quiet, cabins, drive time — and a shortlist of lakes that fit, with the water quality behind each one.

Take the quiz →

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys and the EPA Water Quality Portal.

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Clearest Lakes in America 2026: Ranked by Secchi Clarity

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