Every Lake
French Lake
Five miles of shoreline outside Faribault, 870 acres deep enough to fish and shallow enough to remember.
- 10 ft · first step
- 19 ft
- 29 ft
- 38 ft
- 48 ft
- 58 ft · bottom
About French Lake
French Lake sits just outside Faribault, Minnesota, in a stretch of Rice County shaped by glacial retreat roughly 10,000 years ago, when meltwater carved the basins that became southern Minnesota's lake belt. The lake covers about 870 acres with roughly five miles of shoreline, small enough to cross by kayak in an afternoon but large enough to support a year-round population of walleye, bass, and panfish. Faribault grew up along the Cannon River a few miles east, and French Lake has long served as its closer, quieter counterpart for people who wanted water without the drive.
The lake's shoreline mixes older cabins converted to full-time homes with newer construction, a pattern common to lakes within commuting distance of a regional hub like Faribault. Ice fishing draws a steady crowd in winter, when anglers set up houses over the deeper basin sections. Summer traffic leans toward pontoon boats and shore fishing rather than high-speed watersports, a function of the lake's modest size and the residential density around it. Local fishing reports and DNR surveys have tracked the lake's panfish and walleye populations for decades, making it a known, if unglamorous, entry on the region's lake maps.
- 20 roads engraved around the shore, 7 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.
French Lake depth chart, in wood
This is a French Lake depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 10 ft, 19 ft, 29 ft, 38 ft, 48 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 58 ft. The lake covers about 1.4 square miles, and 20 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 French Lake 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 French Lake 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 French Lake.
French Lake 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 French Lake; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. French Lake 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 58 ft
- 1.4 square miles of water
- 20 shore roads engraved, 7 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
