Shelf Lake is an

alpine lake An alpine lake is a high-altitude lake in a mountainous area, usually near or above the tree line, with extended periods of ice#On lakes, ice cover. These lakes are commonly glacial lakes formed from glacial activity (either current or in the pas ...

in Custer County,

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, located in the

White Cloud Mountains The White Cloud Mountains are part of the Rocky Mountains of the Western United States, western United States, located in central Idaho, southeast of Stanley, Idaho, Stanley in Custer County, Idaho, Custer County. The range is located within the ...

in the

Sawtooth National Recreation Area The Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) is a national recreation area in central Idaho, United States that is managed as part of Sawtooth National Forest. The recreation area, established on August 22, 1972, is managed by the U.S. Forest S ...

. The lake is named for a distinct rock shelf extending around the south and west shores of the lake. The lake is accessed from

Sawtooth National Forest Sawtooth National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest that covers 2,110,408 acres (854,052 ha) in the U.S. states of Idaho (~96 percent) and Utah (~4 percent). Managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the United States Depart ...

trail 683.Sawtooth National Forest. “Sawtooth National Forest” ap1:126,720, 1”=2 miles. Twin Falls, Idaho: Sawtooth National Forest, United States Forest Service, 1998. Shelf Lake is northeast of Merriam Peak and located in the lower section of the

Boulder Chain Lakes The Boulder Chain Lakes are a chain of thirteen alpine and glacial Paternoster lakes in Custer County, Idaho, United States, located in the White Cloud Mountains in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The lakes are located in the upper portio ...

Basin.

References

See also