Frenchman Lake (California)

Frenchman Lake (a.k.a. Frenchmen's Reservoir and several derivations thereof) is located in Southeastern Plumas County, California and was created by the damming of Little Last Chance Creek. It was named after Frenchman Creek and Claude Francois Seltier, a French immigrant who settled in the area in 1858.

This article is about the lake in California. For the lake in Nova Scotia, see Frenchman Lake (Nova Scotia).
Frenchman Lake
LocationPlumas County, California
Coordinates39°53′38″N 120°11′24″W
Typereservoir
Primary inflowsLittle Last Chance Creek
Primary outflowsLittle Last Chance Creek
Basin countriesUnited States
Surface area1,580 acres (6 km2)
Average depth35 ft (11 m)
Max. depth101 ft (31 m)
Surface elevation5,588 ft (1,703 m)

Frenchman Dam

Frenchman Dam was completed in 1961 as an irrigation project of the California Department of Water Resources, a rock-fill and earthen dam 129 feet high, with a length of 720 feet at its crest. Normal water storage in the reservoir is 55,477 acre-feet.

Geography

The Frenchman Lake's elevation when full is 5,588 feet (1,703 m) above sea level. The surface area of Frenchman Lake is 1,580 acres (6 km2). The shoreline length is 21 miles (34 km), the maximum depth reaches 101 feet (31 m), averaging 35 feet (11 m). The nearest community is Chilcoot-Vinton, California which is approximately 8 miles (13 km) south.

National Forest Recreation Area

The United States Forest Service administers the Plumas National Forest land surrounding the lake as a National Forest Recreation Area, locally managed as part of the Beckwourth Ranger District. The Frenchman Lake Recreation Area offers a wide variety of summer outdoor experiences including: camping, picnicking, fishing, hunting, boating, jet skiing, mountain biking, swimming and water-skiing. In the winter, ice fishing, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing are favored activities.

Public campgrounds are located on the south shore at Cottonwood Springs, Frenchman, Spring Creek and Big Cove. Additionally there is another campground located below the dam along Little Last Chance Creek.

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See also
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