Largest lakes & reservoirs in Southern Illinois by shoreline length
The length of the exterior shoreline around a lake is measured at the lake’s normal elevation. The shoreline length can be considerably shorter or longer when lake water levels are lower or higher than normal. A lake with many coves has a much longer shoreline than a lake of similar surface area that is nearly circular in shape.When known, the shoreline miles that we report in our statistics include only the lake’s exterior shoreline, and exclude the shorelines of islands located within a lake’s boundaries. In lakes with many islands, those islands’ combined shorelines may exceed a lake’s exterior shoreline.
You can find many of the world’s longest-shoreline lakes on LakeLubbers. Note: For some lakes, "Longest Shorelines" data is unknown or does not apply, so this table may display fewer lakes than the total 10 articles we have published for Southern Illinois lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US Midwest Region > Illinois > Southern Illinois > Compared by longest shoreline length in miles. This list does not represent all lakes in Southern Illinois, only the 10 Southern Illinois lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Shoreline length in miles |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Rend Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
162 mi | Rend Lake, located in southern Illinois, is a fantastic place to enjoy all sorts of outdoor recreational activities. This reservoir, the second larges… |
| Lake of Egypt, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
93 mi | She settles herself into the kayak and pushes away from the shore. The small boat cuts through the fog rising from the surface of the lake, and she tu… |
| Kinkaid Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
73 mi | Kinkaid Lake is a scenic 2,350-acre reservoir surrounded by sandstone bluffs and rolling hills of oaks and hickories on the edge of the Shawnee Nation… |
| East Fork Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
32 mi | Also known as East Fork Reservoir East Fork Lake, in the Southern Region of Illinois, is a well-kept secret in a land of many secrets. The southern third of Illinois has been known as… |
| Cedar Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
30 mi | Cedar Lake is located at the edge of the Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois. This 1,750-acre reservoir was created by the City of Carbondale… |
| Little Grassy Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
28 mi | Surrounded by watchful forest trees and open grasslands, the Little Grassy Lake is a quiet body of water sitting in the middle of a Southern Illinois… |
| Forbes Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
18 mi | What started as a humble two acre lake in a twenty acre park has grown into one of southern Illinois’ best fishing lakes and a great family destinatio… |