About the Lake

Lake Whatcom is about ten miles long and just over one mile wide at its widest point. 

The Lake Whatcom Watershed is home to a variety of fish and wildlife species. 

Lake Whatcom is the source of water for approximately half of Whatcom County residents. The majority of these residents obtain water from the City of Bellingham. 

The same tectonic forces that shaped the Cascade Range also tightly folded the layers of the Chuckanut Formation to create the Chuckanut Mountains including the hills around present day Lake Whatcom.  

While our drinking water remains very clean and safe, the water quality in Lake Whatcom has been declining in recent decades due to ongoing changes and activities in the Lake Whatcom watershed.