Pleasant Hill Lake Water Level
Pleasant Hill Lake is at 1,020.20 ft today (Oct 31), 0.20 ft above its 1,020 ft full pool, down 0.05 ft this week.
Ohio · Clear Fork Mohican River
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Water level history
About Pleasant Hill Lake
Pleasant Hill Lake is a reservoir on the Clear Fork Mohican River in Ohio, operated by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its full summer pool sits at 1020 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Pleasant Hill Lake's water level
Pleasant Hill Lake is a flood control reservoir first and a lake second. The earthen dam, 775 feet long and 113 feet high, blocks the Clear Fork of the Mohican River about two miles southwest of Perrysville, right on the Ashland and Richland county line, and it controls 197 square miles of drainage. It was one of the fourteen original dams of the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District, which was formed in 1933 and finished that system by 1938. After the Flood Control Act of 1939, operation of the dams passed to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District, which still runs the gates. The MWCD owns the lake and manages the park, cottages, marina and campground on the north shore. Sources disagree slightly on the completion year: the National Inventory of Dams lists 1937.
The number to know is 1,020 feet, the normal summer pool and the top of the conservation pool. Everything above it is flood storage, and the Corps can stack water up to 1,065 feet, the top of the flood pool, where the lake holds about 87,700 acre feet against 13,500 at normal pool. That is why the level can climb fast after heavy rain upstream and then fall as the Corps releases water through the outlet. The highest elevation in the Corps reservoir record is 1,044.01 feet. The gauge panel on this page covers only about 2020 onward, and its high is 1,035.76 feet in 2026. In early summer 2013 the lake rose 18 feet above normal, flooded the whole park including the campground, and closed it for three weeks.
The lake bends in two directions, and the halves behave differently. The western arm, where the Clear Fork comes in, is shallow, mostly under ten feet, with a clay and silt bottom and the only real weed growth along its shoreline. The middle slopes to about twenty feet before the lake turns sharply south into a steep sided, gorge shaped basin with boulder shorelines and cooler water. Mohican State Park holds the south shore, and its lodge overlooks that bend. Below the dam, the 4.8 miles of Clear Fork from the base of the dam to the Black Fork were designated scenic in 2006 as part of the Mohican State Scenic River, flowing past Clear Fork Gorge State Nature Preserve. Spring water is often muddy, about six inches of visibility, clearing to around four feet later in the season.
Pleasant Hill Lake — frequently asked
What is Pleasant Hill Lake's normal pool level?
1,020 feet. The MWCD lists 1,020.00 feet as normal pool, the ODNR fishing map bases its depth contours on a normal summer pool of 1,020 feet, and the Corps treats that elevation as the top of the conservation pool and the bottom of the flood pool. Readings above 1,020 mean the lake is holding floodwater, and the Corps will release it as downstream conditions allow.
When is Pleasant Hill Lake drawn down for winter?
For the 2025 to 2026 season the MWCD scheduled the drawdown to begin November 15, lowering the lake 6 feet from 1,020 to a winter level of 1,014 feet over about 42 days. The drawdown gives the Corps extra room for snowmelt and spring rain and gives MWCD crews time for shoreline work. The schedule changes from year to year, so check the MWCD announcement each fall.
When does Pleasant Hill Lake refill in spring?
The MWCD's suggested intermediate target is 1,018 feet by March 15, two feet below normal pool, with the lake returning to 1,020 feet as spring flows allow. In the 2023 to 2024 and 2024 to 2025 winters the Corps asked for a deeper drawdown, to 1,012 feet, for construction and maintenance work at the dam, holding that level until February 15 before returning to the normal winter schedule.
Why was Pleasant Hill Lake so low in 2025?
The gauge panel's 2025 low of 1,011.63 feet sits close to the 1,012 foot level the MWCD scheduled for the 2024 to 2025 winter. That year the MWCD scheduled an 8 foot drawdown, citing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers maintenance work at Pleasant Hill, and the lake was held at the requested elevation until February 15, 2025.
What is the record high at Pleasant Hill Lake?
The Corps reservoir record lists a top of record elevation of 1,044.01 feet, 24 feet above normal pool and still well short of the 1,065 foot top of the flood pool and the 1,085 foot top of the dam. The gauge panel on this page covers only about 2020 onward, so its 2026 high of 1,035.76 feet is the highest reading in that recent window, not the all time record.
Is there a horsepower limit on Pleasant Hill Lake?
No. The MWCD lists the horsepower limit as unlimited. The lake does have posted no wake and 6 mph zones on the MWCD map, and the marina on the north shore off State Route 95 has a gasoline dock and concession stand.
What fish are in Pleasant Hill Lake?
The MWCD species list includes saugeye, muskellunge, northern pike, largemouth and smallmouth bass, white bass, crappie, yellow perch, bluegill, channel and flathead catfish, and bullheads. The ODNR Division of Wildlife manages the lake for public fishing and hunting under an agreement with the MWCD, ODNR rules apply on the water, and the reservoir is open to waterfowl hunting in the fall.
Other lakes near Pleasant Hill Lake
- Senecaville LakeOH
- Piedmont LakeOH
- Tappan LakeOH
- Paint Creek LakeOH
- Tom Jenkins Lake (Burr Oak)OH
- Leesville LakeOH
See current levels for all 16 Ohio lakes and reservoirs →
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