Blue Springs Lake Water Level
Blue Springs Lake is at 802.24 ft today (Oct 31), 0.24 ft above its 802 ft full pool, up 0.02 ft this week.
Missouri · East Fork Little Blue River
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Water level history
About Blue Springs Lake
Blue Springs Lake is a reservoir on the East Fork Little Blue River in Missouri, operated by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its full summer pool sits at 802 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Blue Springs Lake's water level
Blue Springs Lake is the smaller half of the Corps of Engineers' Little Blue River plan, a pair of flood control lakes authorized by Congress on 13 August 1968 alongside Longview Lake. The Kansas City District built it on the East Fork of the Little Blue River just below Lake Jacomo, so it catches the runoff from 32.8 square miles of eastern Jackson County before it reaches Independence and the lower valley. The dam is a 70 foot earthen embankment 2,500 feet long, completed in 1988. Both its outlet and its 300 foot spillway are ungated, which means nobody opens or closes anything to move this lake. Floodwater piles up behind the dam and drains out on its own through an outlet that passes only about 570 cubic feet per second even with water at the spillway crest. The Corps credits the project with $92.5 million in flood damages prevented between 1988 and 2010.
The Corps lists the top of the conservation pool at 802 feet, and most of the time the lake sits within a foot or two of it. Storms push it up quickly and it bleeds back down over days or weeks. Flood storage runs to 820.3 feet, with the spillway crest at 823.6 and the top of the dam at 840 (NGVD29). Water first reached conservation pool in March 1990, and two months later the lake set its record: the USGS gauge read 816.37 feet on the morning of 17 May 1990. In that storm local inflows below the dams flooded new development downstream, even though Blue Springs held water about seven feet below its spillway and Longview about eight. The next highest mark came in May 2007 at 811.12 feet. The lowest reading since the lake filled is 799.64 feet in September 2007.
Jackson County Parks + Rec runs the lake as part of Fleming Park, the same park that holds Lake Jacomo just upstream. The county lists 720 acres of water, a lifeguarded beach, a campground and Blue Springs Marina on Bowlin Road. The county bills it as the place for power boating, water skiing, tubing and jet skiing. A county boat and motor permit is required, and paddleboards and windsurfers are allowed only Monday through Thursday. The Missouri Department of Conservation stocks roughly 5,000 young hybrid striped bass a year and says fish of ten pounds and more are not uncommon, usually found chasing shad near the dam and windy points in late summer and early fall. Flathead catfish are well established, with fish over 50 pounds reported. MDC and the Corps sank 75 cedar brush piles in 2022, added more near the dam and ramp in 2024, and zebra mussels turned up in 2017.
Blue Springs Lake — frequently asked
What is Blue Springs Lake's normal pool level?
The Corps of Engineers lists the top of the conservation pool at 802 feet above sea level (NGVD29), covering a bit over 700 acres. That is the level the lake is meant to hold in normal weather. Above it sits flood storage up to 820.3 feet, then the spillway crest at 823.6 and the top of the dam at 840. At 802 feet the lake holds about 10,800 acre-feet; at the top of the flood pool, about 26,600.
What is the record high level at Blue Springs Lake?
816.37 feet on the USGS gauge's morning reading of 17 May 1990, roughly 14 feet above conservation pool. The lake had only reached normal pool for the first time that March. Even then it stayed about seven feet below the spillway, according to the Corps. The next highest readings were 811.12 feet in May 2007 and 808.77 feet in October 2018. The July 2024 crest reached 808.25.
Why does Blue Springs Lake rise so fast after heavy rain and drain so slowly?
The dam has no gates. Its outlet is a fixed opening that can pass about 570 cubic feet per second at most, and only when the water is up at the spillway crest. A hard rain on the 32.8 square miles above the dam arrives faster than that, so the lake stores the difference and lets it out on its own schedule. The Corps cannot speed the drawdown or hold water back once it is in.
What is the lowest Blue Springs Lake has been?
The lowest daily reading since the lake filled is 799.64 feet on 18 September 2007, a little more than two feet below conservation pool, in the same year as the second highest crest. The East Fork above the lake is an intermittent stream that often stops running. Readings in the 800 to 801 foot range show up in some late summers and falls, including 2012, 2018 and 2021.
When was Blue Springs Lake built?
Congress authorized it on 13 August 1968 as part of the Little Blue River basin plan, along with Longview Lake, channel work and levees. The Corps' 1971 environmental statement shows land still being bought. Archaeologists worked the site from 1983 to 1985, and the Kansas City District finished the dam in 1988. Impoundment was underway by October 1988, and the lake first reached its 802 foot conservation pool in March 1990.
What fish are in Blue Springs Lake?
MDC stocks about 5,000 young hybrid striped bass each year and says hybrids of ten pounds and more are not uncommon. White bass, black and white crappie, largemouth bass under a 15 inch minimum, channel catfish and flatheads over 50 pounds round it out. Eurasian watermilfoil is the dominant plant. Seventy five cedar brush piles went in during 2022, and more were added near the dam and boat ramp in 2024.
Do I need a permit to boat on Blue Springs Lake?
Yes. Jackson County requires a boat and motor permit for every watercraft on its lakes. Annual permits are sold at Blue Springs Marina on Bowlin Road and at the Parks + Rec office on Woods Chapel Road, and one day permits are available online. Paddleboards and windsurfers are limited to Monday through Thursday, and swimming is allowed only at the beach or from an anchored boat while wearing a life jacket.
Other lakes near Blue Springs Lake
- Bull Shoals LakeAR/MO
- Wappapello LakeMO
- Longview LakeMO
- Truman LakeMO
- Mark Twain LakeMO
- Table Rock LakeMO
See current levels for all 12 Missouri lakes and reservoirs →
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