Lake Levels & Conditions

Kentucky Lake & Lake Barkley Levels & Weather

Current Weather

Murray, KY - Kyle-Oakley Field (KCEY) Last Updated on Oct 21 2020, 3:55 am CDT
Weather	Air Temp	Wind	Dewpoint	Pressure
Fair	64°	South 6 mph	59°	30.11"

Get more current weather conditions and extended forecasts for towns in the Kentucky Lake region.

Current Lake Levels

Lake levels reported from TVA as of 4 AM 10/21/2020

	Upper Stage	Lower Stage	Water Temp
Kentucky Lake	354.9'	303.8'	67°
24 Hour Change:	0.0'	0.0'
From Normal:	+0.2'	+1.8'
Last Hour Discharge:	45,510 cfs / Average
Water Clarity:	Normal
Generation Schedule:	10/21/2020, midnight - midnight - 4 or more generators

Kentucky Lakes Stages - Previous 48 Hours

	Upper Stage	Lower Stage
Lake Barkley	355.0'	308.9'
24 Hour Change	0.1'▲	1.1'▲
From Normal:	+0.3'	+6.9'
Last Hour Discharge:	20,000 cfs / Average
Water Clarity:	Some Stain
Generation Schedule:	10/21/2020, midnight - midnight - 2 or more generators

Lake Barkley Stages - Previous 48 Hours

	Upper Stage	Lower Stage	Water Temp
Normals	354.7'	302.0'	67°

Special Lake Information & Notices

The lakes are near winter pool. Stay in the main channels when running. And always wear your PFD. Stay safe out there!

TVA Lake Level Forecasts

Forecast	Kentucky Upper	Kentucky Flow	Barkley Upper	Barkley Flow
Today 3:00am	354.9'	45,400 cfs	354.9'	18,870 cfs
9:00am	355.0'	45,400 cfs	354.9'	26,930 cfs
3:00pm	354.9'	45,400 cfs	354.8'	34,830 cfs
9:00pm	354.8'	45,400 cfs	354.6'	34,850 cfs
10/22 3:00am	354.8'	45,400 cfs	354.8'	18,870 cfs
9:00am	354.9'	45,400 cfs	354.8'	26,930 cfs
3:00pm	354.8'	45,400 cfs	354.7'	34,830 cfs
9:00pm	354.7'	45,400 cfs	354.5'	34,850 cfs
10/23 3:00am	354.7'	45,400 cfs	354.6'	18,870 cfs
9:00am	354.8'	45,400 cfs	354.7'	26,930 cfs
3:00pm	354.7'	45,400 cfs	354.6'	34,830 cfs
9:00pm	354.6'	45,400 cfs	354.4'	34,850 cfs
10/24 3:00am	354.6'	28,000 cfs	354.5'	9,200 cfs
9:00am	354.7'	28,000 cfs	354.7'	21,270 cfs

TVA Kentucky Lake Operating Guide

Summer Pool 359.0': May 1 - July 4

Winter Pool 354.0': December 1 - March 31

The gray-shaded area in the chart above shows the target lake stages for Kentucky Lake throughout the course of a year, typically +/- one foot.

Kentucky Lake & Lake Barkley Records

• Kentucky Lake Record High:  372.49'- 5/04/2011
• Lake Barkley Record High:  372.49' - 5/04/2011
• Kentucky Lake Record Low:  348.02' - 3/11/1961
• Lake Barkley Record Low:  352.3' - 4/19/1982
• Kentucky Lake Record cfs:  446,000 - 1944
• Lake Barkley Record cfs:  303,000 - 5/04/11
• Lake Barkley Lower Record High:  350.8' - 5/04/11
• Kentucky Lake Record High Water Temp:  90.8° - 8/2/11
• Kentucky Lake Record Low Water Temp:  36.2° - 1/12/2010

Explanation of Lake Level Data

Water temperatures are reported from Hancock Biological Station. The water temperature sensor is near the main river channel and is about three feet below the water's surface.  Click here for a chart of normal water temps. 

Change - this shows the difference in the past 24 hours.

Normal - this shows the departure from normal.

cfs = cubic feet per second, which is the amount of water that is discharged through the dams.

Water Clarity - "stained" means some murkiness or discolor in the lakes.  "Normal" means typical clarity, usually 3-4 feet for Kentucky.  "Muddy" means no clarity at all.

Lake elevation is based on sea-level.  Strength of current is based on the discharge rate at the dams.  Kentucky Lake is much larger than Lake Barkley, so 100,000 cfs at Barkley Dam produces stronger current than 100,000 cfs at Kentucky Dam. Below is an unofficial chart to compare discharge strengths.

Discharge	Kentucky Dam	Barkley Dam
Below 15,000 cfs	Very Low	Low
15,000-30,000	Low	Average
30,000-65,000	Average	Above Average
65,000-100,000	Above Average	Strong
100,000 to 200,000	Strong	Very Strong
200,000 to 300,000	Very Strong	Powerful
300,000 to 400,000	Powerful	Very Powerful
Over 400,000	Very Powerful	Unprecedented

Lake elevations and current forecasts are provided in real-time from TVA and the NWS.

The Kentucky Lake Operating Guide is provided by TVA.