Beech Fork Lake Water Level
Beech Fork Lake is at 592.72 ft today (Oct 31), 0.72 ft above its 592 ft full pool, down 0.12 ft this week.
West Virginia · Twelvepole Creek
Full pool is the summer level. Beech Fork Lake is drawn down about 8.5 ft to roughly 583.5 ft over winter for flood storage, so a lower reading outside the summer season is usually scheduled rather than drought.
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Water level history
About Beech Fork Lake
Beech Fork Lake is a reservoir on the Twelvepole Creek in West Virginia, operated by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its full summer pool sits at 592 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Beech Fork Lake's water level
Beech Fork Lake is a small flood control reservoir with a lot of room above it. The Corps of Engineers dam at Lavalette in Wayne County impounds Beech Fork, a tributary of Twelvepole Creek, about seven miles south of Huntington, and it drains roughly 78 square miles. At summer pool, 592 feet, the lake covers about 720 acres and holds around 9,200 acre feet. The spillway crest sits at 614.5 feet and the top of the earthen dam at 640, and at maximum the reservoir can hold about 37,500 acre feet. That gap between the everyday lake and the brim is the point of the project. When heavy rain hits the Twelvepole watershed, the Corps closes down releases, stores the runoff, and lets it out later at rates the creek below can carry. Huntington District water managers watch a control gage at Lavalette while they do it.
Two numbers frame the year. The summer target is 592 feet and the winter target is 583.5, so the cold season lake sits 8.5 feet lower, with more empty space for winter and spring storms. Inflow is the only thing that brings it back up, which matters in dry years. In spring 2026 an unusually dry stretch left the lake too low to launch boats from around Easter into late May, and the Corps kept the Stowers Branch swimming beach closed through Memorial Day because the water was several feet below the level needed to operate it. A burst of rain in the last week of May raised the pool about five feet in a matter of days and the lake reopened. The Corps also posts the elevations where things stop working: the state launch ramp below 583, the Corps launch ramp below 580, the outer marina slips below 574, and the beach below 589.
The highest pool on record came on 6 March 1997, when the lake rose to 608.45 feet, more than sixteen feet above summer pool. That was the flood that began with 3.17 inches of rain on Huntington in 24 hours on 1 March and kept going for two more days, sending the Ohio to 57.52 feet and forcing evacuations along Twelvepole Creek in Wayne County. The project dates to the Flood Control Act of 1962, and the Corps built it in the mid 1970s by damming the Beech and Millers forks; it opened to the public in 1978. Most of the surrounding land stayed public. Beech Fork State Park covers 3,144 acres around the upper lake, and the Beech Fork Lake Wildlife Management Area takes in more. A 9.9 horsepower limit keeps the lake quiet and protects the shoreline from wakes. WVDNR lists hybrid striped bass, spotted and largemouth bass, crappie, channel catfish, saugeye, bluegill and tiger muskellunge.
Beech Fork Lake — frequently asked
What is Beech Fork Lake's full pool level?
Summer pool is 592 feet above sea level, which is the site's full pool figure and the elevation the Corps of Engineers targets through the warm months. At that level the lake covers about 720 acres. The winter target is 583.5 feet. Water above 592 is flood storage, and the reservoir can rise to the spillway crest at 614.5 feet before water would pass over the uncontrolled spillway.
What is the record high level at Beech Fork Lake?
The Corps lists the record pool as 608.45 feet on 6 March 1997, more than sixteen feet above summer pool and about six feet short of the spillway crest. It came during the regional flood that began with more than three inches of rain on Huntington on 1 March 1997. This all time record is older than the recent high shown in the gauge widget, which only covers about the last five years.
Why is Beech Fork Lake low?
Usually for one of two reasons. Through the cold season the Corps holds the lake near its winter target of 583.5 feet, 8.5 feet below summer pool. In a dry spring the lake can also lag behind schedule because refilling depends entirely on rain and inflow. That happened in 2026, when drought kept boats off the water from around Easter until late May rains raised the pool about five feet.
At what lake level do the Beech Fork boat ramps close?
The Corps publishes impact elevations for the lake. The state launch ramp becomes unusable below 583 feet, which is just under winter pool. The Corps launch ramp at Lower Bowen goes out below 580 feet, and the outer slips at the marina are unusable below 574. At the high end, the courtesy dock at the Lower Bowen ramp closes above 593.6 feet and its parking lot floods above 597.6.
When does the Beech Fork swimming beach close for water level?
The Stowers Branch beach is listed as closed when the lake is below 589 feet, three feet under summer pool, so a slow spring refill can delay the season, as it did in May 2026. It also closes on the high side: above 594 feet the beach and the accessible fishing platform are shut. The state park day use area is affected above 593.6 feet.
Can you use a big motor on Beech Fork Lake?
No. Beech Fork Lake has a 9.9 horsepower limit. Boats with larger engines can launch only if the propeller is removed, according to the Corps. The rule exists to prevent large wakes from eroding the shoreline of a 720 acre lake with about 31 miles of shore. The marina rents motorboats and canoes, and the Corps charges a daily fee at the marina launch ramp.
What fish are in Beech Fork Lake?
WVDNR lists hybrid striped bass, spotted bass, largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, saugeye and tiger muskellunge. The Corps notes the lake is stocked with saugeye, channel catfish, largemouth bass, black crappie and hybrid bass, and that trout are stocked in the tailwater below the dam from February through April. Millers Fork Pond nearby is a trout pond reserved for children under 10 and Class Q permit holders.
Other lakes near Beech Fork Lake
- Bluestone LakeWV
- Sutton LakeWV
- Burnsville LakeWV
- Summersville LakeWV
- East Lynn LakeWV
- R.D. Bailey LakeWV
See current levels for all 7 West Virginia lakes and reservoirs →
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