Every Lake
Lake Pepin
A wide natural lake on the Mississippi, and the place waterskiing was invented in 1922.
- 6 ft · first step
- 12 ft
- 18 ft
- 24 ft
- 30 ft
- 36 ft · bottom
About Lake Pepin
Lake Pepin is a natural widening of the Mississippi River between Minnesota and Wisconsin, formed where the delta of the Chippewa River, entering from the Wisconsin side, dams the main river's flow. The lake runs about 21 miles long and up to two miles wide below Red Wing, with the towns of Lake City, Minnesota, and Stockholm and Pepin, Wisconsin, along its shores. Ralph Samuelson is credited with inventing waterskiing here in 1922, and Lake City still calls itself the birthplace of the sport, alongside sailing and the small-town river tourism that fills its marinas each summer.
- 1 roads engraved around the shore, 1 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.
Lake Pepin depth chart, in wood
This is a Lake Pepin depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 6 ft, 12 ft, 18 ft, 24 ft, 30 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 36 ft. The lake covers about 0.1 square miles, and 1 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 Lake Pepin 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 Lake Pepin 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 Lake Pepin.
Lake Pepin 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 Lake Pepin; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Lake Pepin 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 36 ft
- 0.1 square miles of water
- 1 shore roads engraved, 1 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
