Every Lake
Calaveras Reservoir
A drinking-water reservoir 25 miles from downtown San Jose, off-limits to boats since 1935.
- 7 ft · first step
- 14 ft
- 21 ft
- 28 ft
- 35 ft
- 42 ft · bottom
About Calaveras Reservoir
Calaveras Reservoir sits in the hills between Alameda and Santa Clara counties, built to store water for San Francisco's growing East Bay system in the early 20th century. The dam impounds runoff from Calaveras Creek and Arroyo Hondo, and the reservoir has long served as a working part of the regional water supply rather than a public recreation site. Its watershed lands are largely undeveloped, bordered by ranchland and open hillside rather than towns.
Because the reservoir has been closed to public access and boating for decades, it functions mainly as protected watershed and wildlife habitat rather than a lake town scene. San Francisco Public Utilities Commission oversees the property, and a major seismic retrofit of the dam took place in the 2010s and 2020s to bring it up to current safety standards. The surrounding hills draw hikers and cyclists on nearby trail corridors, even though the water itself stays off-limits.
- 9 roads engraved around the shore, 0 of them labeled
- 6 depth layers, each step engraved with its depth in feet
- Compass rose, title block with coordinates, max depth and area; keyhole hanger on the back
Turn it in your hands
Live 3D of the actual cut files — drag to orbit, pinch to zoom. Every road you see is engraved on the real thing.
Viewer not showing? Open it full screen.
Calaveras Reservoir depth chart, in wood
This is a Calaveras Reservoir depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 7 ft, 14 ft, 21 ft, 28 ft, 35 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 42 ft. The lake covers about 2.1 square miles, and 9 shore roads are engraved around it. The shape of the bottom is the real one from published soundings, so anglers recognise their drop-offs and points.
A Calaveras Reservoir map for the wall — or a gift
Most of these go to a cabin wall, a lake house entry, or a home office; a lot are gifts — the family that has been on Calaveras Reservoir for three generations, the retirement move, the first boat. The 12-inch is the desk-and-shelf size; the 24- and 30-inch boards read across a room. Add a line under the title and star your place on the shore, and it becomes the map of your Calaveras Reservoir.
Calaveras Reservoir map — the details
How big is the map?
Four sizes: 12, 17, 24 and 30 inches on the long side, from $149. Every size is cut from the same depth data of Calaveras Reservoir; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Calaveras Reservoir is cut layer by layer from published bathymetric soundings — each layer of birch is a depth contour, so the shape of the bottom is the real one, not decorative.
Can I add my own place on it?
Yes. At checkout you can add a line under the title (a family name, a cabin name, a year) and star the spot on the shore that matters to you.
How long does it take?
Made to order in Waterford, Pennsylvania and shipped in 7–10 days; shipping is free in the lower 48.
Can you make a lake that isn't listed?
Any lake in the United States — we hold depth data for 104,419 of them. Search for yours; if it isn't built yet we build it when you order.
- 6 depth layers down to 42 ft
- 2.1 square miles of water
- 9 shore roads engraved
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
