Lake Pontchartrain ( in English; Lac Pontchartrain, in French) is a brackish lake located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second largest salt-water lake in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. It covers an area of 630 square miles (1630 square km) with an average depth of 12 to 14 feet (about 4 meters). Some shipping channels are kept deeper through dredging. It is roughly oval in shape, about 40 miles (64 km) wide and 24 miles (39 km) from south to north.
The south shore forms the northern boundary of the city of New Orleans, and its two largest suburbs Metairie and Kenner. On the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain is an area called The North Shore which contains some of the metropolitan area's wealthiest suburbs. The largest are the cities of Mandeville, Covington, Madisonville and Slidell.
