Cisco Beach - Bear Lake, UT - Dive Sites on Waymarking.com

The Utah State Parks website (visit link) for Bear Lake State Park, reports:

"Bear Lake was formed some 28 thousand years ago by earthquake activity. Its unique aqua-blue color is the result of calcium carbonates suspended in the lake. At an elevation of 5,923 feet, Bear Lake is 20 miles long and 8 miles wide, 208' deep, covering 112 square miles.

Originally Bear Lake was called Black Bear Lake by Donald Mackenzie, explorer for the North West Fur Company who discovered it in 1819 while scouting for fur-bearing animals, largely beaver, to satisfy urban demand for hats. The name was later changed to Bear Lake.

The beach is named for the famous rendezvous of fur trappers and Indians held in the summers of 1827 and 1828. The gatherings were attended by a thousand or more Indians and mountain men including Jedediah Smith. There were so many campfires at the south end of the lake at these trading sessions that one observer called the area "a lighted city."

East Side-Cisco Beach-South Eden-North Eden-1st Point: These primitive areas are located on the east shore approximately ten miles north of Laketown. The terrain is rocky and the water depth drops off quickly to 208 feet.

Cisco Beach is famous for its midwinter fishing with dip nets for the little seven-inch Bonneville Cisco, a member of the white fish family. For a week to ten days in January, swarms of the little fish come close to the rocky shore to spawn. They are easily scooped up by hardy fishermen wading waist-deep in the icy water or through holes in the ice if the lake is frozen.

Cisco Beach is also known for this excellent inland water scuba diving opportunities. The rocky bottom and the steep drop off close to shore make this location a favorite of divers from the Tri-State area. Two diving areas have been marked and designated for this activity. Wooden walkways assist the diver in accessing the water with his needed equipment."

More about the Bonneville Cisco can be found at: (visit link)

A sign, located at the entrance to Cisco Beach, relates the following:

WELCOME TO CISCO BEACH
Divers Paradise of Utah!

Cisco Beach is named after the Bonneville Cisco Fish that are found nowhere else in the world and are only seen in this area during their spawning season about the middle of Jaunary.

This Beach attracts hundreds of Scuba Divers and Fishermen yearly. Divers are attracted by the unique geological features found on the cliffs that drop off to nearly 200 feet below the waters surface. Fishermen are attracted by the wonderful Cisco Fish in the winter and the many sport fish in the summer.

Water Type: Lake Salinity: Fresh Access: Shore Maximum Depth: 208 Typical Visibility: Poor (11-25 ft) Has Reef?: no Wreck or Submerged Object?: Ship/boat Underwater Life: Cisco Beach is famous for Bonneville Cisco. You can also see cutthroat trout, mackinaw and whitefish

Visit Instructions:
1) To log a visit, at least a picture taken at the surface, including any distinguishing landmarks or buoys if present, is required. While you do not have to enter the water, this is encouraged.

2) If you dive at the site, describe your visit including any details you wish to share such as weather, water temperature, visibility, bottom time, and anything of interest that you observed, living or nonliving.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   09/04/2014 merlot visited it 06/09/2011 Chasing Blue Sky visited it

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