Every Lake
Galway Lake
Dammed in 1855 to feed an Amsterdam reservoir, now ringed by five miles of shoreline.
- 10 ft · first step
- 21 ft
- 31 ft
- 41 ft
- 51 ft
- 62 ft · bottom
About Galway Lake
Galway Lake sits in the Town of Galway, Saratoga County, New York, about twenty miles northwest of Saratoga Springs. The lake was created by a dam on North Chuctanunda Creek, first built in 1855 to supply water downstream to the city of Amsterdam. The dam was later enlarged, raising the lake to its present level. The surrounding land stayed rural, part of the rolling farm and forest country between the Adirondack foothills and the Mohawk Valley.
Cottages went up around the shoreline over the twentieth century, and the lake is still organized in part around a longstanding campers' association that represents shoreline property owners. It draws a summer population of seasonal residents alongside a smaller year-round base in the hamlet of Galway. Anglers fish it for bass and pickerel. At roughly 487 acres with about five miles of shoreline, it is a modest, working reservoir rather than a resort lake, closer in character to its neighbors in western Saratoga County than to Saratoga Lake to the east.
- 69 roads engraved around the shore, 12 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.
Galway Lake depth chart, in wood
This is a Galway Lake depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 10 ft, 21 ft, 31 ft, 41 ft, 51 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 62 ft. The lake covers about 0.8 square miles, and 69 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 Galway 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 Galway 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 Galway Lake.
Galway 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 Galway Lake; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Galway 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 62 ft
- 0.8 square miles of water
- 69 shore roads engraved, 12 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
