RAINBOW LAKE
Conservation Company, Inc
Conserving Arizona's Water
Rainbow Lake:
Summer
This is how beautiful Rainbow Lake can be in the summer. With 4 distinct seasons, the appearance of the lake changes all year.
Rainbow Lake:
Winter
At 6,700 to 7,200 feet elevation, Pinetop-Lakeside gets freezing temperatures and 2 to 4 feet of snow each winter. Rainbow Lake is sometimes frozen over and its beauty changes.
When the water level drops:
With the inability to control how much water flows out of the lake, as well as the inability to control water loss from seepage and evaporation down stream, Rainbow Lake can become a mud flat.
Not only does it detract from the beauty of the lake, it makes the lake unusable for recreation. Even more importantly, the habitat for wildlife of all kinds is severely impacted. When the lake can't support fish, the primary food source for eagles and ospreys disappears.
More images from 2022
