552.62 ft NGVD29
level 0.6 ft above full pool — on the high side for mid-August
Reading comes straight from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data (USACE series Barren.Elev.Inst.0.0.lrldlb-raw) and updates live when you load this page.
Barren River Lake through the year
The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 2002–2026. 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.
- 2025 (wettest on record)
- 2026 (driest on record)
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 | 552.00 ft NGVD29 · per USACE Louisville District full-pool reference |
|---|---|
| Gauge | USACE series Barren.Elev.Inst.0.0.lrldlb-raw · U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data |
| Datum | NGVD29 — CWMS location Barren (LRL) vertical-datum NGVD29 (confirmed via /locations), matches USGS 62614. Top of Conservation 552.0 ft (winter 525). |
| 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 Barren River Lake right now?
Barren River Lake is at 552.62 ft (NGVD29) as of August 15, 2026 — 0.6 ft above full pool — on the high side for mid-August
Is Barren River Lake full?
Yes and then some — at 552.62 ft, Barren River Lake is 0.6 ft above its full pool of 552.00 ft (NGVD29), using flood storage.
What is full pool for Barren River Lake?
Full pool (the conservation pool) for Barren River Lake is 552.00 ft NGVD29, per USACE Louisville District full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.