11 Deepest Lakes in the World

Break out your scuba gear as we discover 11 deepest lakes in the world.

When we talk about lakes, depth isn’t something that is regularly considered. However, these 11 lakes redefined a term “murky depths”, their deepest points ranging from 1,923 feet of General Carrera-Buenos Aires Lake to the incredible 5,387 feet of Russia’s Baikal Lake. That means you can plop a pretty sizeable mountain in it and it wouldn’t stick out.

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It’s no wonder then that people often imagine them inhabited with monsters, like the famous Loch Ness one. On our list, the most famous would be Emela-ntouka or “the killer of elephants”, supposedly residing in Tanganyika Lake, among other places. Although no human attacks have been reported, diving into Tanganyika searching for Emela-ntouka may not be the smartest idea ever, considering its maximum depth of over 4,800 feet.

None of the largest manmade lakes in the world is present among the 11 deepest lakes in the world, which isn’t too surprising. The natural lakes are formed in deep ravines and even drift valleys between tectonic plates, like Lake Baikal. As the plates continue to move away from each other, the drift becomes deeper, meaning that Baikal can increase its depth.

Interestingly enough, not a single European lake made it onto the list, although Norwegian Hornindalsvatnet Lake came in 12^th.