Skaneateles Lake

Skaneateles Lake details:

• Length: 16 miles
• Maximum width: 1.5 miles
• Maximum depth: 300 feet
• Average depth: 145 feet
• Major cities and towns: Skaneateles, Mandana, Scott, Woodland

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The clear, clean lake

The management of Skaneateles Lake has been rare not only in the Finger Lakes Region - but nationally. Careful management of waste and pollutants that enter the water, and development along its shores, has led this lake to be ranked among the cleanest in the United States.

You see, Skaneateles Lake supplies the drinking water to the city of Syracuse. The city of Syracuse itself produced one of the most polluted bodies of water in the US: Onondaga Lake. When I lived in Syracuse around the year 2004, you did not swim in Onondaga Lake because it wasn’t safe.

But just 30 miles or so away, the lake that feeds people’s taps in the city is so clear you can see to the bottom of it on a clear, bright day - even though it's 300-feet-deep! That’s incredible!

Careful lake management continues through policies that limit industrial development on the lake’s shores, awareness on how to prevent invasive species introduction through boating, and care taken overall. 

This is a lake with personality you won’t want to miss - because of its beauty and its reputation.

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How did Skaneateles Lake get its name?

Skaneateles Lake got its name in the same manner nearly all the Finger Lakes of New York did: derived from a phrase the Iroquois used to call the lake. 

The Iroquois, also known as the Six Nations or the Haudenosaunee, were composed of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora nations. While it's easy to think these tribes formed as a response to European colonization, they had actually come together prior to this, using the confederacy as a way to maintain peace throughout the tribes of the region. 

Skaneateles Lake seems to rest in the middle of territory lines. The Cayuga Nation populated Cayuga Lake, two lakes to the west. The Onondagas, the keepers of the flame, were located more northerly, on Onondaga Lake near present-day Syracuse. 

Skaneateles Lake was referred to as “long lake.” I find this a little lacking in personality, but maybe she's just more magnificent today than she was in bygone days?

Truly magnificent! 

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Things to do while visiting Skaneateles Lake

So, you wanna visit Skaneateles Lake?

Skaneateles Lake is known for having some deep history, amazing paddles, and clean, clear water. I don't blame you for wanting to come here. Even though I live locally, I'm planning my next trip too!

To find out more about the following activities on Skaneateles Lake, just click on the link. I suggest you try them all - because you just never know what kind of good stuff you might miss out on if you don't!

Boating

Hiking

Paddling

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