Boating Lake Champlain


Boating on Lake Champlain offers great views of the Adirondack and Green Mountains. It also provides you a great way to connect with important US history.

Here are some great facts about Lake Champlain.






Lake Champlain is the 6th largest body of fresh water in the United States.  Only the Great Lakes are larger. Yet is it only 1/14th the size of the smallest Great Lake, Ontario. It has a rich natural and historical past. It plays a vital role in the quality of life of the people who live on or near its shores or who come to visit. It's future depends on our stewardship of this incredible resource.
  • It is 120 miles long and 12 miles wide at its widest point.
  • It has over 70 islands and 600 miles of shoreline.
  • Its deepest point is 400 ft. The average depth is 64 ft.
  • It is bounded on the west by the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and on the east by the Green Mountains of Vermont. It flows north from Whitehall, New York to the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec.
  • It is home to the oldest known fossil reef in the world. (450-480 million years old)
  • It is the birthplace of the American Navy, and but for the stalling effects of the American fleet lead by Benedict Arnold in the fall of 1776, the American Revolution probably would have been lost.
  • In 1990, 608,000 people lived in the Champlain Basin, with the population growing about 1.2% a year.
  • On a typical summer day in 1992, there were 7500 motor boats, 3000 sailboats, 15 commercial vessels, and countless swimmers, wind surfers, kayakers, canoers and scuba divers on or in the lake. 10 years later that number has increased significantly.
  • More than 188,000 people rely on Lake Champlain for their drinking water.
  • 81 species of fish, 318 species of birds, 56 species of mammals, plus 21 species of amphibians and 20 species of reptiles also rely on Lake Champlain for their drinking water.
  • The lake is a major breeding area and a stopping point for spring and fall birds migrating along the Atlantic flyway.
  • 16 species of birds found in the Champlain Basin are listed as endangered species.

The vast majority of data for this page came from the Lake Champlain Basin Program--an incredible source of information about Lake Champlain and the Lake Champlain Basin.