Every Lake
Alder Lake
Formed in 1945 when Tacoma dammed the Nisqually River, twenty-eight miles of shoreline below Mount Rainier.
- 12 ft · first step
- 24 ft
- 36 ft
- 48 ft
- 60 ft
- 73 ft · bottom
About Alder Lake
Alder Lake sits on the Nisqually River in Pierce County, Washington, formed when Tacoma City Light finished Alder Dam in September 1945 after construction that began in 1942. The concrete arch dam rises 330 feet and was built to add hydroelectric capacity during World War II, when Tacoma was buying extra power from Seattle and the Bonneville Power Administration to cover its war industries. Downstream, the older La Grande Dam works the same stretch of river. Filling the reservoir put the original town of Alder underwater and rerouted the old river valley road along the new shoreline.
The lake runs about seven miles long with roughly twenty-eight miles of shoreline, most of it forested and undeveloped compared to lakes closer to Tacoma. Alder Lake Park, run by Tacoma Power, is the main public access point, with campsites and boat launches near the dam. Anglers fish it for kokanee and rainbow trout, and it draws a mix of Tacoma-area campers and travelers heading up Highway 7 toward Mount Rainier National Park. Tacoma Power draws the reservoir down each fall and winter for flood control, exposing wide mudflats before it refills in spring.
- 4 shore towns named, with a star on each
- 131 roads engraved around the shore, 10 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.
Alder Lake depth chart, in wood
This is a Alder Lake depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 12 ft, 24 ft, 36 ft, 48 ft, 60 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 73 ft. The lake covers about 4.1 square miles, and 131 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 Alder 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 Alder 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 Alder Lake.
Alder 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 Alder Lake; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Alder 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 73 ft
- 4.1 square miles of water
- 131 shore roads engraved, 10 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
