Lake Isabella

Lake Isabella is like a super big swimming pool for a city called Bakersfield, way out in California. It's about as far as driving from your house to school, then back again, and then to school one more time! It sits in low mountains, where the sun shines super hot in the summer, but it doesn't get too much snow in the winter.

The water comes from a big river called the Kern River, which splits into two parts before filling up the lake.

This giant lake wasn't always here! A long, long time ago, in 1953, some very busy people called the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a huge wall, like a giant's dam, across the Kern River.

This wall stopped the river's water, and it started to fill up a big valley, creating the lake we see today. Before the lake, there were towns with people living there, but they had to move away when the water came!

This lake is super important because it holds a LOT of water, enough to be the main drink for Bakersfield. It's one of the biggest water holders in all of California! The lake is so big, it covers an area as large as about 5,500 football fields!

It's a place where people can go to have fun, like swimming and boating, and it's a home for fish too. It's like a giant water park made by nature and people working together.

Did you know that Lake Isabella is so big it covers 11,000 acres? That's a lot of space! The water in the lake is about 2,500 feet high up in the mountains. That's taller than many skyscrapers stacked on top of each other! Even though it's hot in the summer, the water is usually cool and refreshing for swimming. It's a special place that helps a whole city stay hydrated!