Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris) Water Level
Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris) is at 788.75 ft today (Oct 31), 4.25 ft below its 793 ft full pool, down 0.84 ft this week.
Alabama · Tallapoosa River
Full pool is the summer level. Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris) is drawn down about 8 ft to roughly 785 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 Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris)
Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris) is a reservoir on the Tallapoosa River in Alabama, operated by Alabama Power. Locals call it Lake Wedowee; the Corps and the utility call it R.L. Harris Reservoir. Its full summer pool sits at 793 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CWMS) and update hourly.
Understanding Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris)'s water level
Harris is the youngest dam Alabama Power owns. The site on the upper Tallapoosa was picked out for a dam in the mid 1920s, federal approval did not come until 1973, construction began in November 1974, and the lake began filling on April 20, 1983. It is the newest of the company's 14 hydro developments and the first of four dams on the Tallapoosa, sitting upstream of Martin, Yates and Thurlow. The dam is a 151.5 foot concrete structure with a 310 foot gated spillway carrying five radial flood gates, and behind it the lake stretches about 29 miles across 9,870 acres, draining 1,454 square miles. It is named for Rother L. "Judge" Harris, an Alabama Power director and vice president of electric operations who retired in 1968 after 45 years with the company. Locals call it Lake Wedowee after the Randolph County seat nearby; the utility and the federal paperwork call it Harris.
The level follows an operating curve with two plateaus. Summer pool is 793 feet. Starting October 1 Alabama Power lowers the lake, reaching the normal winter level of 785 feet by November 30, then brings it back up in spring so it is full again by May for the boating season, provided there is enough rain to fill to the guide curve. Harris runs as a peaking plant: two Francis turbines pass up to 8,000 cubic feet per second when power is in demand, and flood, drought and navigation releases are governed by the Corps of Engineers' water control manual for the Alabama, Coosa and Tallapoosa basin. Dry years show up here first. In July 2007, during what was called the worst drought on record for north and central Alabama, Alabama Power expected Harris to fall to 785 feet by late July, eight feet below normal summer level. In a later drought the company got a Corps variance to start refilling Harris early, calling it its primary concern because flows in the upper Tallapoosa were so low.
Low water at Harris is more than a dock problem. The city of Wedowee draws its drinking water from the lake through an intake at 779 feet, and Alabama Power has said the city reports silt and pumping trouble whenever the lake drops below 785. On December 26, 2022 the lake stood at about 784.2 feet, Wedowee Utilities could not pump water into its treatment plant, and many residents were without water while Alabama Power promised to bring the lake back to full winter pool by December 31. Below the dam, the way Harris releases water has been argued over for two decades. Since 2005 an adaptive management plan known as the Green Plan has limited the timing and duration of releases, and the first relicensing, filed in 2021, centered on peaking flow erosion, cold and poorly oxygenated releases, and a proposed 300 cubic foot per second continuous minimum flow. The Tallapoosa and Little Tallapoosa merge in the lake just north of the Highway 48 bridge, about 8.5 river miles above the dam.
Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris) — frequently asked
What is Lake Wedowee's full pool?
Full summer pool is 793 feet above sea level, the normal full pool elevation in Alabama Power's relicensing filings. At that level the lake covers about 9,870 acres and runs roughly 29 miles up the Tallapoosa. Each fall it is lowered eight feet to a winter pool of 785 feet. The recent gauge panel on this page tops out at 793.24 feet in 2021, only a fraction of a foot over full pool.
When does Lake Wedowee get drawn down for winter?
Alabama Power begins lowering Harris on October 1 and aims to reach the normal winter elevation of 785 feet by November 30. The lake stays near that level through the winter and is raised again in spring so it is back at 793 feet by May. If spring rainfall is short, the refill can lag the guide curve, and in drought years the company has asked the Corps of Engineers for permission to start filling early.
Why is Lake Wedowee so low?
Most of the time it is the scheduled winter drawdown, which takes the lake from 793 feet down to 785 between October and the end of November. Beyond that, Harris sits at the top of the Tallapoosa with a modest 1,454 square mile watershed, so dry spells hit it hard. In the 2007 drought Alabama Power expected the lake to reach 785 feet, a full winter level, by late July.
How low has Lake Wedowee been recently?
The lowest reading on this page's recent gauge panel is 784.05 feet in 2022. Late that December the lake fell below winter pool; it read 784.18 feet on December 26, 2022, and Wedowee's water system could not pump into its treatment plant. The city's intake sits at 779 feet, but Alabama Power has said the city reports silt and pumping problems once the lake falls below 785.
Who was R.L. Harris?
Rother L. Harris, known as Judge Harris, was an Alabama Power director and vice president of electric operations. He retired in 1968 after 45 years with the company, and the dam that impounded the lake in 1983 carries his name. That is why the Corps, FERC and Alabama Power use Harris Reservoir or Harris Lake, while people around Randolph County still call it Lake Wedowee.
Where do the Tallapoosa and Little Tallapoosa rivers meet?
Inside the lake. According to the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the two rivers merge just north of the Highway 48 bridge, about 8.5 river miles above Harris Dam. Wedowee Creek, a fertile tributary on the Little Tallapoosa arm, is singled out by state biologists as one of the better areas for largemouth bass.
How is the bass fishing at Harris Reservoir?
State biologists rate it well for size structure. In their 2009 sampling the share of largemouth between 15 and 20 inches was the highest since 1991, and in the 2008 B.A.I.T. report Harris earned more quality indicator points than any other Alabama reservoir. The catch is condition: low fertility and few forage species keep bass thin, so biologists encourage harvest of largemouth under the slot and spotted bass of any size.
Other lakes near Lake Wedowee (R.L. Harris)
- Weiss LakeAL
- Walter F. George Reservoir (Lake Eufaula)GA/AL
- West Point LakeGA/AL
- Pickwick LakeAL/TN/MS
- Wheeler LakeAL
- Neely Henry LakeAL
See current levels for all 21 Alabama lakes and reservoirs →
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