5412.73 ft operator datum
level 17.3 ft below full pool — typical for mid-August
Reading comes straight from Bureau of Reclamation RISE (Reclamation RISE item 87) and updates live when you load this page.
Horsetooth Reservoir through the year
The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 1986–2026. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.
This year vs the years that matter
This year's trace against last year and the driest and wettest years on record — the drought-context question every lake regular asks.
- 2026 (wettest on record)
- 2002 (driest on record)
- 2025 (last year)
Full pool, datum, and the gauge
"Full pool" here means the conservation pool — the level the lake is designed to hold for water supply and recreation, not the flood-control space above it. The full explainer covers flood pool and dead pool too.
| Full pool | 5430.00 ft operator datum · per USBR / Northern Water (C-BT); recreation by Larimer County full-pool reference |
|---|---|
| Gauge | Reclamation RISE item 87 · Bureau of Reclamation RISE |
| Datum | operator datum — Larimer County: 'water elevation is 5,430 feet full and 5,341 feet empty'. |
| Last verified | August 15, 2026 |
LakeDates reports lake level, not ramp status. Whether a given ramp or marina is usable at this level varies ramp by ramp — call the marina before you tow.
Quick answers
How full is Horsetooth Reservoir right now?
Horsetooth Reservoir is at 5412.73 ft (operator datum) as of August 14, 2026 — 17.3 ft below full pool — typical for mid-August
Is Horsetooth Reservoir full?
Not quite — at 5412.73 ft, Horsetooth Reservoir is 17.3 ft below its full pool of 5430.00 ft (operator datum).
What is full pool for Horsetooth Reservoir?
Full pool (the conservation pool) for Horsetooth Reservoir is 5430.00 ft operator datum, per USBR / Northern Water (C-BT); recreation by Larimer County full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.