Every Lake
Wickiup Reservoir
Built in 1949 to store the Deschutes River for high desert farms downstream.
- 11 ft · first step
- 21 ft
- 32 ft
- 42 ft
- 53 ft
- 63 ft · bottom
About Wickiup Reservoir
Wickiup Dam went up on the Deschutes River in 1949, built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to store irrigation water for farms across Central Oregon's high desert. The reservoir backs up over the old river channel and surrounding lodgepole pine flats south of Bend, near La Pine. Water levels swing hard by season: full through summer irrigation months, then drawn down each fall and winter as districts release stored water downstream, leaving mudflats and stranded channels exposed by late winter.
The reservoir draws anglers for kokanee salmon and brown trout, some of the largest caught in Oregon, along with campers at the Forest Service sites ringing its shoreline in the Deschutes National Forest. Its shape follows the drowned river and creek arms rather than a single basin, giving it long fingers of open water broken by submerged snags and old channel banks. At roughly 9,350 acres with about 43 miles of shoreline, it ranks among the larger reservoirs in the Cascades' eastern foothills.
- 25 roads engraved around the shore, 5 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.
Wickiup Reservoir depth chart, in wood
This is a Wickiup Reservoir depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 11 ft, 21 ft, 32 ft, 42 ft, 53 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 63 ft. The lake covers about 15.1 square miles, and 25 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 Wickiup 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 Wickiup 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 Wickiup Reservoir.
Wickiup 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 Wickiup Reservoir; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Wickiup 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 63 ft
- 15.1 square miles of water
- 25 shore roads engraved, 5 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
