Diaz Lake is located in the Owens Valley, California, It has the distinction of having recently been formed as the result of a large earthquake. Click on the panoramic thumbnail for the full-sized version.
From Wikipedia:
Diaz Lake is located just south of Lone Pine, California, United States in Owens Valley. The lake was formed by the 1872 Lone Pine earthquake when 18 mi (29 km) of the Owens Valley dropped approximately 20 feet (6 m) and a new spring opened, causing water to fill the lowland.
The lake was named for the Diaz family who established a ranch here when brother Rafael and Eleuterio Diaz emigrated from Chile in the 1860’s. They owned and operated a successful cattle ranch until the land was sold to the city of Los Angeles.
Year-round fishing is available, and the “Diaz Lake Fish Derby” is held the first Saturday in March.
It’s been many, many years since I’ve traveled to Lone Pine (although that was not my destination) but I do have a question about the lake.
Knowing that area does not get a lot of rainfall, does the feeder spring keep up with the evaporation rate? There’s nothing definitive in the picture as to a high-water mark unless of course this is it.
Norm
I can’t be sure if the spring is the sole source of replenishment to the lake. I suspect that since it’s in the alluvial runoff plain just below the Sierra Nevada mountains, the spring thaw of snowfall on the eastern slopes makes its way into the lake.