Lake Samish, Freshwater lake in Whatcom County, United States.

Lake Samish is a freshwater lake in Whatcom County, Washington, covering about 800 acres (324 hectares) in a forested mountain setting. The body of water connects to nearby waterways and sits within a landscape shaped by the Chuckanut range.

Members of the Samish tribe lived at sites on the lake before European settlement. In 1873 the Northern Pacific Railway Company surveyed the Lake Samish valley toward Bellingham Bay, and in March and April 1885 Charlie Barns and William Harris staked 160-acre claims on the east and west shores. A Seattle–Vancouver highway built along the east side in 1931 became part of U.S. Route 99, later replaced by Interstate 5.

The name Samish comes from the Samish people, who lived at sites on the lake before European settlement. Today the lake is used for recreation in summer by local residents, and homesites cover almost the entire shoreline. Hilary Swank grew up in a trailer park next to the lake.

Public access is limited: Whatcom County runs a park with a rough boat launch on the northern shore, while the state operates a modern boat launch on the east shore. The lake lies west of Interstate 5 between Alger and Bellingham, and almost the entire shoreline is covered by homesites.

The first European settlers at the lake were Charlie Barns and William Harris, who each staked a 160-acre claim in March and April 1885, Barns on the east shore and Harris on the west. Actress Hilary Swank grew up in a trailer park beside the lake.