Sandpoint is located in the Panhandle of North Idaho on the northern shore of Lake Pend Oreille and at the foot of the Selkirk Mountains. Many visitors get their first view of Sandpoint as they drive the Long Bridge on Highway 95 that crosses the lake. From this vantage point they can get a sense of the size of the lake, the beauty of the surrounding mountains and the idyllic setting of the town. For many, this view sells them on Sandpoint forever.

Lake Pend Oreille (pronounced Pon-duh-ray) is the largest natural body of fresh water in Idaho and one of the largest in the Western United States. It is over 43 miles in length, is 6.5 miles in width at its widest point, and has over 111 miles of shoreline. Most amazingly, the lake is over 1,100 feet deep in places and is the home to a variety of fish including world-record size Kamloops and Mackinaw. Summer pool level is 2,062.5 ft.

Lake Pend Oreille is a remnant of a huge lake that once extended from the Canadian border down through the Purcell Trench (the route of Highway 95) to the area of Spokane. Receding glaciers dammed the trench near Bayview and formed what we now call Lake Pend Oreille.