Pyramid Lake is located in southeastern
Washoe County in western Nevada. It is in an elongated intermontane basin between the
Lake Range on the east, the
Virginia Mountains on the west, and the
Pah Rah Range on the southwest. The
Fox Range and the
Smoke Creek Desert lie to the north. In a parallel basin to the east of the Lake Range is
Winnemucca Lake, now a dry lake bed. Prior to the construction of the
Derby Dam in 1905, both lake levels stood at near above sea level. Following the dam's completion, the water levels dropped to and for Pyramid and Winnemucca, respectively. In 1957, the Pyramid Lake level was at and the dry Winnemucca Lake bed at had been dry since the 1930s. Pyramid Lake is the largest remnant of ancient
Lake Lahontan, which covered much of northwestern Nevada at the end of the last
ice age. It was the deepest point of Lake Lahontan, reaching an estimated due to its low level relative to the surrounding basins.
Sutcliffe is on the west shore of Pyramid Lake along
State Route 445.
Nixon is on the Truckee River to the southeast of the lake on
State Route 447. The largest tufa formation,
Anaho Island, is home to a large colony of
American white pelicans and is restricted for ecological reasons. Access to the Needles, another spectacular tufa formation at the northern end of the lake, has also been restricted due to recent vandalism.
The Pyramid The Pyramid (), also known as Fremont's Pyramid and Pyramid Island, is a small island near the southeastern shore of the lake. It is located approximately northeast of
Anaho Island and slightly less than from the community of Sutcliffe. The white band seen to the east of the island is composed of
calcium carbonate which came from when the lake was at or near its overflow point. ==Fish==