Bear Lake was formed some 28,000 years ago by earthquake activity. Its unique aqua blue color is the result of calcium carbonates suspended in the lake. Its elevation is 5,923 feet and the lake is 20 miles long, 8 miles wide, 208' deep and covers 112 square miles.
Donald Mackenzie, a North West Fur Company explorer, discovered the lake in 1819 while scouting for fur-bearing animals, largely beaver. He named it Black Bear Lake but the name was later changed.
Rendezvous Beach was named from the annual Mountain Men, Indian and supply caravans' rendezvous held in the area between 1825 and 1840. In 1827 and 1928, the Rocky Mountain fur companies gathered at the south end of Bear Lake to trade furs for supplies and to eat, drink, tell stories and compete with each other. The many campfires lit by the 1,000+ attendees caused one observer to call the area "a lighted city." An annual Mountain Man Rendezvous is held here in the fall.
East Side, Cisco Beach, South Eden, North Eden and First Point are primitive areas located on the east shore. The terrain is rocky and the water depth drops off quickly to 208 feet. Activities enjoyed there include scuba diving, boating and fishing.
Cisco Beach is famous for its mid-winter fishing with dip nets for the little seven inch Bonneville Cisco, a member of the whitefish family. For a week to ten days in January, swarms of the little fish come close to the rocky shore to spawn and are scooped up by fishermen wading waist deep in the icy water or through holes in the ice if the lake is frozen.
Legend says a serpent-like monster has appeared in the lake. Its home is said to be in the water caves on the east shore. Shoshone Indians believed that if they swam in the lake, the monster would get them. For a long time, no one found the bottom to Bear Lake. It was believed the Bear Lake and Loch Ness were connected by underground tunnels and that the monster seen in Bear Lake was actually the Loch Ness Monster swimming between the two lakes. Several solutions to the mystery of the monster have been presented. It could be ice formations, a cloud in the water, a large school of fish or a herd of elk swimming across the lake. No one is willing to say if it is real or not.
Additional recreational activities near to Bear Lake include many hiking trails, Minnetonka Cave, the Beak Lake National Wildlife Refuge and unlimited road and mountain biking activities. Water skiing, swimming, scuba diving and sailing are common activities. Fishing is for cutthroat, mackinaw and whitefish.