Lakes inspire a diverse range of thoughts and feelings including tranquility, quiet contemplation, and fond memories of childhood summers from days long past. With an abundance of lakes throughout the United States, residents from each state can seize the opportunity to bask in the glory of wondrous lakes. For landlocked states such as Tennessee and South Dakota, local lakes are convenient places for residents to enjoy the experience of splashing around and wading in cool, refreshing water. On the other hand, states along the coast like California and South Carolina have the best of both worlds since locals can effortlessly pass the time at serene lakes or sandy beaches that lead out into the vast ocean.
While simply admiring and gazing at the sheer beauty of lakes is a pleasurable pastime, actually jumping in and immersing yourself in a lake is an even more enjoyable activity. Lakes as swimming holes is probably what Mother Nature intended these magnificent bodies of water to be. Moreover, since lakes are usually located in or around state parks, they are the perfect places to head to if you plan to camp overnight or embark on a day trip. So with that said, here is our list of the best lake for swimming in each of the 50 states:
Best Lakes for Swimming
| Alabama Eberhart Point Fort Payne, AL | Montana Flathead Lake Polson, MT |
| Alaska Matanuska Lake Gateway, AK | Nebraska Lake McConaughy Ogallala, NE |
| Arizona Wet Beaver Creek Lake Montezuma, AZ | Nevada Sand Harbor Las Vegas, NV |
| Arkansas Lake Sylvia Perryville, AR | New Hampshire Lonesome Lake Franconia, NH |
| California Lake Tahoe South Lake Tahoe, CA | New Jersey Shepherd Lake Ringwood, NJ |
| Colorado Paradise Cove Florissant, CO | New Mexico Elephant Butte Lake Elephant Butte, NM |
| Connecticut Enders Falls Granby, CT | New York* Lake George Lake George, NY |
| Delaware Lake Como Smyrna, DE | North Carolina Lake Glenville Cashiers, NC |
| Florida Blue Spring Orange City, FL | North Dakota Lake Metigoshe Bottineau, ND |
| Georgia Lake Lanier Gainesville, GA | Ohio Alum Creek Lake Lewis Center, OH |
| Hawaii Ko’Olina Lagoon Kapolei, HI | Oklahoma Broken Bow Lake Broken Bow, OK |
| Idaho Coeur d'Alene Lake Coeur d'Alene, ID | Oregon Trillium Lake Portland, OR |
| Illinois Lake Le-Aqua-Na Lena, IL | Pennsylvania Gouldsboro Lake Tobyhanna, PA |
| Indiana Monroe Lake Bloomington, IN | Rhode Island Spring Lake Harrisville, RI |
| Iowa Lake Red Rock Knoxville, IA | South Carolina Lake Murray Columbia, SC |
| Kansas Lake Shawnee Topeka, KS | South Dakota Sylvan Lake East Custer, SD |
| Kentucky Kentucky Lake Murray, KY | Tennessee Percy Priest Lake Nashville, TN |
| Louisiana Prien Lake Calcasieu Parish, LA | Texas Lake Tejas Colmesneil, TX |
| Maine Moosehead Lake Greenville, ME | Utah Deer Creek Reservoir Provo, UT |
| Maryland Deep Creek Lake Swanton, MD | Vermont Silver Lake Barnard, VT |
| Massachusetts Walden Pond Concord, MA | Virginia Claytor Lake Dublin, VA |
| Michigan Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Empire, MI | Washington Green Lake Seattle, WA |
| Minnesota Lake Harriet Minneapolis, MN | West Virginia Summersville Lake Summersville, WV |
| Mississippi Grenada Lake Jackson, MS | Wisconsin Stewart Lake Mount Horeb, WI |
| Missouri Table Rock Lake Branson, MO | Wyoming Lake Hattie Laramie, WY |
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