Lakes / Nebraska / Cherry County / Big Alkali Lake
Big Alkali Lake, Nebraska
813 acres
Surface Area
Where It Sits, and How Deep It Goes
Locator - Nebraska
42.63 degrees N, 100.61 degrees W - Cherry County. State and county outlines drawn from Census boundary data; the lake marker is placed by its USGS National Hydrography Dataset coordinates, not by eye. Schematic - not a survey map.
How Big Alkali Lake Stacks Up
- Larger than 96% of the 660 lakes counted in Nebraska.
- About 104 miles from North Platte, as the crow flies.
Lakes Nearby
| Lake | County | Distance | Surface Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smith Lake | Cherry | 2.0 mi | 35 acres |
| Bakers Lake | Cherry | 2.1 mi | 75 acres |
| Spencer Lake | Cherry | 2.2 mi | 36 acres |
| Trout Lake | Cherry | 3.3 mi | 550 acres |
| Ell Lake | Cherry | 3.3 mi | 135 acres |
| Clear Lake | Cherry | 4.9 mi | 510 acres |
Straight-line distance between lake centers.
Facts and Figures
Questions About Big Alkali Lake
How Big Is Big Alkali Lake?
Big Alkali Lake covers 813 acres in Cherry County, Nebraska.
What Is the Largest Lake in Cherry County?
Merritt Reservoir is the largest lake in Cherry County, at 2,544 acres.
Largest Lakes in Nebraska
| # | Lake | County | Surface Area | Max Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lake McConaughy | Keith | 24,885 acres | - |
| 2 | Harlan County Lake | Harlan | 12,822 acres | - |
| 3 | Calamus Reservoir | Loup | 5,032 acres | - |
| 4 | Swanson Lake | Hitchcock | 4,661 acres | - |
| 5 | Sutherland Reservoir | Lincoln | 2,956 acres | - |
All 660 Nebraska lakes ranked by surface area
Sources: USGS NHD (The National Map NHD MapServer layer 12) named waterbodies FTYPE 390/436; counties via Census point-in-polygon lake data (ID 127743117). Verified October 30, 2026.