Lakes / Alaska / Yukon-Koyukuk County / Why Lake
Why Lake, Alaska
204 acres
Surface Area
Where It Sits, and How Deep It Goes
Locator - Alaska
66.05 degrees N, 146.64 degrees W - Yukon-Koyukuk 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 Why Lake Stacks Up
- Larger than 58% of the 2,450 lakes counted in Alaska.
- About 89 miles from Fairbanks, as the crow flies.
Lakes Nearby
| Lake | County | Distance | Surface Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Roberts Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 7.8 mi | 46 acres |
| Shoeheel Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 8.0 mi | 76 acres |
| Lower Halfway Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 8.8 mi | 282 acres |
| Gas Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 8.9 mi | 102 acres |
| Ninemile Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 9.9 mi | 823 acres |
| Upper Halfway Lake | Yukon-Koyukuk | 9.9 mi | 111 acres |
Straight-line distance between lake centers.
Facts and Figures
Questions About Why Lake
How Big Is Why Lake?
Why Lake covers 204 acres in Yukon-Koyukuk County, Alaska.
What Is the Largest Lake in Yukon-Koyukuk County?
Lake Minchumina is the largest lake in Yukon-Koyukuk County, at 11,712 acres.
Largest Lakes in Alaska
| # | Lake | County | Surface Area | Max Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iliamna Lake | Lake and Peninsula | 654,518 acres | - |
| 2 | Becharof Lake | Lake and Peninsula | 289,706 acres | - |
| 3 | Teshekpuk Lake | North Slope | 206,614 acres | - |
| 4 | Naknek Lake | Lake and Peninsula | 145,357 acres | - |
| 5 | Dall Lake | Bethel | 111,681 acres | - |
All 2,450 Alaska 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 37463557). Verified October 30, 2026.