Hillsdale Lake Water Level
Hillsdale Lake is at 916.94 ft today (Oct 31), 0.06 ft below its 917 ft full pool, down 0.07 ft this week.
Kansas · Big Bull Creek
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Water level history
About Hillsdale Lake
Hillsdale Lake is a reservoir on the Big Bull Creek in Kansas, operated by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its full summer pool sits at 917 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Hillsdale Lake's water level
Hillsdale Dam backs up Big Bull Creek in northwestern Miami County, between Spring Hill and Paola, about eighteen miles above the creek's confluence with the Marais des Cygnes River. Congress authorized it in the Flood Control Act of 1954 for flood control, water supply, water quality, recreation, and fish and wildlife, but construction money did not arrive until 1973. The Kansas City District of the Corps began building in 1978 and finished the dam in 1982, which makes Hillsdale one of the newest reservoirs in Kansas. The Corps counts it as part of its Osage River system alongside Melvern, Pomona, Stockton, Pomme de Terre and Truman, so water held here is water kept off the Marais des Cygnes, Osage and Missouri downstream. The earthen dam generates no power. More than 70 percent of the standing timber was left in the basin when it flooded, meant as fish habitat.
The number to watch is 917 feet, the top of the multipurpose pool, where the lake covers about 4,580 acres with 51 miles of shoreline. Everything from 917 up to 931 feet is flood storage, and at the top of that pool the lake spreads to roughly 7,410 acres. The spillway crest sits at 935 and the top of the dam at 952.2. Most of the time the lake barely moves: in the Corps hourly record since 1985 it has spent close to half its hours between 916 and 918 feet, and only about 6 percent above 920. When it does rise, the water that is held back to protect the Marais des Cygnes, Osage and Missouri comes off slowly; in 2019 the lake stayed above 920 feet from May until mid September. Operations still follow a water control manual dated June 1985, which the Corps is now updating.
The lake also supplies drinking water to more than 30,000 people in southern Johnson County and northern Miami County, and can deliver 17.3 million gallons a day; nine public water suppliers formed the Hillsdale Area Water Cooperative in 2011. The watershed is 144 square miles, nearly 90 percent of it in Johnson and Miami counties, and it sends in a lot of soil. The state's watershed plan puts storage lost to siltation at 6.26 percent, about 176 acre-feet a year, and state and Corps reports list the lake as impaired by eutrophication, with blue-green algae dominant. Around the water, Kansas Wildlife and Parks has managed 12,880 acres as Hillsdale State Park and Wildlife Area under a 1989 lease; the park officially opened in 1994. It has seven boat ramp areas, two beaches, about 200 campsites in the Russell Crites Area, 32 miles of horse trails at Saddle Ridge, and roughly 7,000 acres open to hunting.
Hillsdale Lake — frequently asked
What is Hillsdale Lake's full pool elevation?
917 feet above sea level (NGVD 1929) is the top of the multipurpose pool, the level the Corps aims to hold. At 917 the lake covers about 4,580 acres. The flood pool tops out at 931 feet, the spillway crest is at 935, and the top of the dam is 952.2. Readings within a foot of 917 are the most common.
What is the record high at Hillsdale Lake?
929.39 feet on 8 June 2019, the highest reading in the Corps hourly record that begins in April 1985. That was about twelve feet above normal pool and less than two feet below the top of the flood pool. The lake stayed above 925 feet from 21 May to 24 July that year and did not fall back under 920 until mid September. The next highest marks were 928.52 feet in October 1986 and 928.36 feet in May 1995. The Recent high in the gauge panel on this page covers only the last few years of readings, which is why it shows a lower figure.
What is the lowest Hillsdale Lake has been?
The lowest reading in the Corps record is 904.9 feet on 17 November 1987, in a year when the lake sat between about 905 and 907 feet for months before climbing back in 1988. Since then drought lows have been shallower: 912.55 feet in late August 2003, and 913.18 feet in January 2013 after the 2012 drought. In most years the low is within about two feet of 917. The Recent low in the gauge panel covers only the last few years, so it does not reach this mark.
Why is Hillsdale Lake so high?
Hillsdale is a flood control lake, and everything between 917 and 931 feet is space set aside to catch runoff from its 144 square mile watershed, protecting the Marais des Cygnes, Osage and Missouri rivers downstream. Water stored in that band is released afterward, which is why high water can linger for weeks. In 2019 the lake stayed above 920 feet from the start of May into mid September.
Does Hillsdale Lake have zebra mussels?
Yes. Kansas Wildlife and Parks confirmed a zebra mussel infestation on 17 June 2016, and the Corps also lists them as confirmed. Hillsdale is designated an aquatic nuisance species water, so fish may not be transported alive from it. Boaters are asked to clean, drain and dry boats, trailers and gear before leaving.
How is the fishing at Hillsdale Lake?
State survey numbers are strongest for walleye and crappie. In fall 2021 sampling, 58 percent of walleye topped 18 inches and 11 percent topped 25, and crews took over 19 million walleye eggs there in eight days in spring 2022. Crappie ran 30 fish per net night with 31 percent over 10 inches. Walleye have an 18 inch minimum and crappie a 10 inch minimum, and Hillsdale ranked third in the state for channel catfish.
Who uses Hillsdale Lake's water?
Besides flood control, the lake is a drinking water source for more than 30,000 residents of southern Johnson County and northern Miami County. It can supply 17.3 million gallons a day, and nine public water suppliers organized the Hillsdale Area Water Cooperative in 2011 to use it. Water supply and water quality were both among the purposes Congress authorized in 1954.
Other lakes near Hillsdale Lake
- John Redmond ReservoirKS
- Fall River LakeKS
- Kanopolis LakeKS
- Elk City LakeKS
- Lovewell ReservoirKS
- El Dorado LakeKS
See current levels for all 21 Kansas lakes and reservoirs →
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