Redfish Lake is an alpine lake in central Idaho

Idaho

Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

, United States, located in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area

Sawtooth National Recreation Area

The Sawtooth National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area located in central Idaho, within the Boise, Challis, and Sawtooth National Forests. The recreation area is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and includes the Sawtooth Wilderness...

, at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains

Sawtooth Range (Idaho)

The Sawtooth Range is part of the Rocky Mountains, located within a few miles south of Stanley, Idaho, in the Western United States. Much of mountain range is within the Sawtooth Wilderness, part of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area...

 in Custer County

Custer County, Idaho

Custer County is a rural mountain county located in the center of the U.S. state of Idaho. Established in 1881, it was named for the General Custer Mine, where gold was discovered five years earlier . The population was 4,342 at the 2000 census; it is estimated to have fallen to 4,166 by 2007...

.

It is named for the brilliant sockeye salmon

Sockeye salmon

Sockeye salmon , also called red salmon or blueback salmon in the USA, is an anadromous species of salmon found in the Northern Pacific Ocean and rivers discharging into it...

 that once returned from the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 in such massive quantities that the lake shimmered red during spawning season. However, these fish are now on the endangered species list. The north end of Redfish Lake hosts many developed recreation opportunities, including the Redfish Lake Lodge (restaurant, cabin and boat rentals) and Forest Service

United States Forest Service

The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...

 campgrounds, boat launch, day-use areas and a visitor center. Redfish Lake is about a mile upstream of the smaller but equally picturesque Little Redfish Lake

Little Redfish Lake

Little Redfish Lake is a name given to two different alpine lakes in central Idaho, both in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area and Custer County. This article refers to the lake on Redfish Lake Creek downstream of Redfish Lake and south of Stanley...

. The easiest way to reach the highest peak in the Sawtooths, Thompson Peak

Thompson Peak (Idaho)

Thompson Peak, at high is the highest peak in the Sawtooth Range of Idaho. The top of Thompson Peak is located within Custer County, although some of the lower portion of the mountain is in Boise County. Thompson Peak is also located within the Sawtooth Wilderness portion of the Sawtooth...

, is from the Redfish Lake Trailhead.

The surface elevation

Elevation

The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....

 of Redfish Lake is 6547 feet (1995 m) above sea level. The lake is 4.5 miles (7.2 km) long and 0.72 miles (1.2 km) wide, with a maximum depth of 387 feet (118 m), and 11 miles (18 km) of shoreline. The actual trail around the lake is 17.5 miles (28 km) in length.

The average temperature of the lake ranges from freezing (32°F, 0°C) to a high of around 62°F (16°C) in late July & early August. In the winter the lake freezes over, with ice 30-36" (75–90 cm) thick.

The peaks which frame the lake at its south end are
Mount Heyburn

Mount Heyburn

Mount Heyburn, at 10,299 feet is one of the many peaks in the Sawtooth Range of central Idaho. Mount Heyburn is located in Custer County and within the Sawtooth Wilderness portion of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The town of Stanley is located 8 miles north-northeast of Mount Heyburn...

 at 10,229 ft. (3139 m) to the west and
Grand Mogul at 9,733 ft. (2967 m).

Redfish Lake is approximately five miles (8 km) south of Stanley

Stanley, Idaho

Stanley is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 100 at the 2000 census. The center of population of Idaho is located in Stanley.-Geography:...

; a paved access road from State Highway 75

Idaho State Highway 75

State Highway 75 is a two-lane highway that travels through the Sawtooth Range of central Idaho from Shoshone to Challis. The road is designated as one of Idaho's scenic byways and provides access to Sawtooth National Recreation Area...

delivers motorists to the visitor area at the north shore of the lake.