Lake McClure Water Level
Lake McClure is at 772.78 ft today (Oct 30), 94.22 ft below its 867 ft full pool, down 2.33 ft this week.
California · Merced River
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Water level history
About Lake McClure
Lake McClure is a reservoir on the Merced River in California, operated by Merced Irrigation District. Its full summer pool sits at 867 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Lake McClure's water level
Lake McClure is the Merced River's main storage reservoir, held back by New Exchequer Dam, a 490-foot rockfill dam with a concrete upstream face that Merced Irrigation District built between 1964 and 1967. At its normal maximum elevation of 867 feet the lake stretches 19 miles upstream, covers 7,110 acres, holds 1,024,600 acre-feet, and has about 82 miles of steep shoreline arranged in four arms shaped roughly like a letter H. It replaced a much smaller lake behind the original Exchequer Dam, a 326-foot concrete arch finished in 1926 that stored about 281,000 acre-feet. That older dam was never removed. It sits in the reservoir just upstream of the new one and reappears when the lake gets very low, as it did in the 2015 drought. The 867-foot line matters beyond the gauge: Congress set the lower end of the Merced Wild and Scenic River at that elevation in 1992, which is why a district plan to raise the spillway about 10 feet and store roughly 70,000 more acre-feet has needed an act of Congress and has stalled in the Senate.
The level follows a yearly cycle set by the district and the Army Corps of Engineers. Under the Corps' 1981 water control manual, storage from October through February may not exceed 674,600 acre-feet, which keeps 350,000 acre-feet empty for rain floods; that ceiling corresponds to an elevation around 810 feet. From March through July a second, snowmelt rule applies, and storage is allowed to climb back to the full 1,024,600 acre-feet by July. In practice Merced ID draws the lake down in September and October, holds it low through winter, refills with snowmelt, and typically peaks in June or July. Most years the surface moves between about 780 and 842 feet; only above normal years reach the top. About 520,000 acre-feet a year, roughly half the usable storage, goes downstream to irrigation diversions. New Exchequer powerhouse can run for peak power because McSwain Reservoir, just below, evens out the river releases.
For boaters, the numbers to watch are ramp elevations and the minimum pool. The license asks Merced ID to keep the lake as high as possible from April through October and to hold at least 115,000 acre-feet, about 640 feet. The Barrett Cove north and south ramps and McClure Point work in every year type. Horseshoe Bend needs a below normal year or better, and Bagby needs an above normal or wet year. In critically dry summers the lake can sit more than 125 feet below full. In 2022, when the lake was about 29 percent full, some ramps were closed because they no longer reached the water. The fishery splits in two: threadfin shad and spotted and largemouth bass dominate the warm water, while stocked rainbow trout, landlocked Chinook salmon and kokanee make up the cold water fishery. Bass are the most commonly caught fish, and state health advisories limit eating bass, catfish and Chinook from the lake because of mercury.
Lake McClure — frequently asked
What is Lake McClure's full pool elevation?
The normal maximum water surface is 867 feet, where the lake holds 1,024,600 acre-feet and covers 7,110 acres. The top of New Exchequer Dam is at 879 feet. The 867-foot line is also the legal lower boundary of the Merced Wild and Scenic River, set by Congress in 1992, so the district cannot raise its normal maximum without changing federal law.
What is the lowest Lake McClure has been?
The lowest level since New Exchequer Dam was finished in 1967 came on 3 February 2015, at 585.99 feet and 63,489 acre-feet, about 6 percent of capacity. That was well under the 115,000 acre-foot minimum pool the license targets. Houseboats were rafted together in the deepest water and the 1926 Exchequer Dam was exposed. March 2015 storms raised the lake 19 feet. The low shown on this page's gauge, 663.19 feet in October 2021, covers only recent years.
Why is Lake McClure so low in winter?
Flood control. From October through February the Corps of Engineers rules cap storage at 674,600 acre-feet, leaving 350,000 acre-feet empty to catch storm runoff, so Merced ID releases water in September and October to get under that line, around 810 feet. In dry years the lake is already below the line and the rule has no effect; the low level then simply reflects a short water supply.
When does Lake McClure fill up?
Refill comes from Sierra snowmelt, usually starting in March and peaking in June or July, when the Corps' snowmelt rules allow storage to rise back to full. After the 2021 and 2022 drought the lake went from 717.3 feet on 1 January 2023 to 859.08 feet on 12 July 2023, a rise of about 142 feet. It came near full again in June 2024 at 863.71 feet.
Which Lake McClure boat ramps are open at low water?
The two Barrett Cove ramps and the McClure Point ramp are usable year round in every water year type, according to the district's relicensing studies. Horseshoe Bend needs at least a below normal year, and Bagby needs an above normal or wet year. In 2022 several ramps closed because they no longer reached the water.
Can you see the old Exchequer Dam at Lake McClure?
Only at very low water. The original Exchequer Dam, a 326-foot concrete arch completed in 1926, was left in place when New Exchequer Dam was built just downstream in 1967. It was visible in 2008 and again in 2015, when the lake fell to about 6 percent of capacity. In most years it sits well under the surface.
Is Merced Irrigation District raising the Lake McClure spillway?
Not at present. The district proposed raising the spillway about 10 feet to store up to 70,000 more acre-feet in wet years, which would push water about a quarter mile into the Wild and Scenic stretch of the Merced River. Bills to move the boundary passed the House in 2012 and 2014 but never cleared the Senate.
Other lakes near Lake McClure
- Millerton LakeCA
- Los Banos ReservoirCA
- New Bullards Bar ReservoirCA
- Lake KaweahCA
- New Hogan LakeCA
- Lake IsabellaCA
See current levels for all 29 California lakes and reservoirs →
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