Pyramid Lake is Nevada’s Largest Natural Water Body

Much of the water flowing into Nevada’s Pyramid Lake comes from Lake Tahoe. The two water bodies are connected by the Truckee River, which carries water north. For this reason, Pyramid Lake has been the subject of scientific study for some time, as researchers have looked for water quality changes downstream from the famously clear Tahoe.

A boat on Lake Tahoe. (Credit: Mariana Wagner via Flickr)

But Pyramid Lake is the largest natural lake in Nevada and holds plenty of discoveries of its own. In the mid-80s, it was important in forming a stream simulation and assessment model for the Truckee River to track pollutant loading in the tributary.

Those loads directly affect the Lahontan cutthroat trout and the Cui-ui sucker fish, both endangered species. In recent years, the model has been updated to base its measurements on Total Maximum Daily Loads.

Pyramid Lake, Nevada. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons User Ratzer via Wikipedia, Public Domain)

Other than its connection with the Truckee River, Pyramid Lake is a closed basin. Water only leaves through evaporation or by seeping out underground. This is illustrated by the lake’s volume, which is 25 percent more than that of Great Salt Lake despite its smaller area.

Pyramid Lake’s water is more turbid due to high levels of silt that are transferred by the Truckee, but still supports chub, trout and salmon. Most sediment washes in from the steep, mountainous terrain in the area. Figures on turbidity and other water quality parameters are monitored by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe.