Yatesville Lake Water Level
Yatesville Lake is at 629.80 ft today (Oct 31), 0.20 ft below its 630 ft full pool, down 0.08 ft this week.
Kentucky · Blaine Creek
Full pool is the summer level. Yatesville Lake is drawn down about 6 ft to roughly 624 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 Yatesville Lake
Yatesville Lake is a reservoir on the Blaine Creek in Kentucky, operated by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its full summer pool sits at 630 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Yatesville Lake's water level
Yatesville Lake is Blaine Creek held back about five miles west of Louisa in Lawrence County. Blaine Creek is a tributary of the Big Sandy River. The Huntington District of the Corps of Engineers built the rockfill dam under the Flood Control Act of 1965, and the National Inventory of Dams lists it as completed in 1988, but the lake did not first reach summer pool until 1992, and outdoor writers still call it Kentucky's newest major reservoir. The dam controls a 208 square mile drainage, and flood risk reduction is its first job, with recreation and fish and wildlife management alongside. At summer pool of 630 feet the lake covers about 2,242 acres, with 93.9 miles of shoreline, three islands, a maximum depth near 60 feet and an average depth under 18 feet.
The level follows a fixed guide curve that changes very little from year to year. From December 1 through the end of March the Corps holds the lake at winter pool, 624 feet, which shrinks it to about 1,745 acres. On April 1 the refill begins, climbing a bit less than half a foot a day until the lake reaches 630 on April 15. It stays there through the summer and fall, and the drawdown starts November 1, dropping about two tenths of a foot a day until it is back at 624 on December 1. That six feet of empty space in winter is room to catch rain, and above summer pool the lake can rise to 645 feet, the top of its flood pool, where it would spread to roughly 3,805 acres. The Corps uses the low winter water for repairs to lake structures and has run volunteer shoreline cleanups during the drawdown.
The highest level in the six or so years of data on this page came on 4 March 2021, when the lake reached 641.45 feet after heavy rain the previous weekend. It had been near 626 a week earlier, so it rose about fifteen feet in a week and peaked roughly eleven feet over summer pool, with the state park marina underwater. When Blaine Creek was impounded, the Corps left timber standing in the lake bed below elevation 633, three feet above summer pool, and two old bridges, DeLong and Wellman, were demolished where they stood. Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources biologists rate the largemouth bass fishery good overall under a 15 inch minimum size limit, and their sampling found healthy numbers of white crappie from 10 to 13 inches holding around the submerged trees and fallen treetops.
Yatesville Lake — frequently asked
What is Yatesville Lake's full pool?
Summer pool is 630 feet above sea level, which the Corps holds from mid April through the end of October. At that level the lake covers about 2,242 acres. Winter pool is 624 feet. The flood pool tops out at 645 feet, so the lake has fifteen feet of room above summer pool to store runoff from the 208 square mile Blaine Creek watershed before water reaches the top of the flood pool.
When does Yatesville Lake draw down for winter?
The Corps guide curve starts the drawdown on November 1 and lowers the lake steadily, about two tenths of a foot a day, until it reaches winter pool of 624 feet on December 1. It then holds near 624 through March. The lower level leaves storage for winter and early spring rain and gives the Corps a window to work on structures that are normally underwater.
When does Yatesville Lake fill back up to summer pool?
Refill begins on April 1 and is scheduled to bring the lake from 624 to 630 feet by April 15, a rise of a bit less than half a foot a day. Heavy spring rain can push the lake above the curve for a while, and the Corps then releases the extra water through the dam. A dry spring can leave the lake short of summer pool.
What is the highest Yatesville Lake has been?
The page gauge covers only recent years. In that record the high mark is 641.45 feet on 4 March 2021, during the early March flooding across eastern Kentucky. The lake climbed from about 626 feet a week earlier, ended up roughly eleven feet above summer pool, and flooded the marina at Yatesville Lake State Park. It stayed about three and a half feet below the 645 foot top of the flood pool.
What is the lowest Yatesville Lake has been?
The page gauge covers only recent years. Its low is 623.32 feet on 9 January 2025, during the winter pool season when the guide curve calls for 624. That is less than a foot under normal winter level, so the reading reflects routine winter operation rather than a drought. The lake follows the same rule every year, which keeps its range in most years between about 624 and 630.
Is there standing timber in Yatesville Lake?
Yes, a lot of it. When the reservoir was cleared, timber was left standing in the lake bed below elevation 633, three feet above summer pool, and fish attractors were added afterward. Two demolished bridges, DeLong and Wellman, also lie on the old creek bed. State biologists point crappie anglers to the submerged trees and fallen treetops, and the wood is a big reason bass fishing here holds up.
What fish are in Yatesville Lake?
Largemouth bass are the main draw, with a 15 inch minimum size limit and a fishery the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources rates good. White crappie are plentiful in the 10 to 13 inch range, channel catfish are abundant, and bluegill are present in quality sizes, with gizzard shad as the main forage. Spotted bass are also present, along with a very small smallmouth population.
Other lakes near Yatesville Lake
- Lake BarkleyKY/TN
- Rough River LakeKY
- Barren River LakeKY
- Paintsville LakeKY
- Cave Run LakeKY
- Nolin River LakeKY
See current levels for all 15 Kentucky lakes and reservoirs →
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