Lakes / California / Sierra County / Big Bear Lake
Big Bear Lake, Sierra County, California
25 acres
Surface Area
Where It Sits, and How Deep It Goes
Locator - California
39.69 degrees N, 120.67 degrees W - Sierra 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 Bear Lake Stacks Up
- Larger than 2% of the 1,147 lakes counted in California.
- About 88 miles from Sacramento, as the crow flies.
Lakes Nearby
| Lake | County | Distance | Surface Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long Lake | Sierra | 0.9 mi | 150 acres |
| Gold Lake | Sierra | 1.1 mi | 484 acres |
| Goose Lake | Sierra | 2.1 mi | 28 acres |
| Upper Salmon Lake | Sierra | 2.5 mi | 40 acres |
| Lower Salmon Lake | Sierra | 3.1 mi | 32 acres |
| Deer Lake | Sierra | 3.1 mi | 30 acres |
Straight-line distance between lake centers.
Facts and Figures
Questions About Big Bear Lake
How Big Is Big Bear Lake?
Big Bear Lake covers 25 acres in Sierra County, California.
What Is the Largest Lake in Sierra County?
Stampede Reservoir is the largest lake in Sierra County, at 3,230 acres.
Largest Lakes in California
| # | Lake | County | Surface Area | Max Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salton Sea | Imperial | 233,096 acres | - |
| 2 | Lake Tahoe | Placer | 122,975 acres | - |
| 3 | Goose Lake | Modoc | 93,048 acres | - |
| 4 | Honey Lake | Lassen | 59,917 acres | - |
| 5 | Mono Lake | Mono | 45,124 acres | - |
All 1,147 California 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 62407283). Verified October 30, 2026.