Kentucky · USACE Louisville District

Rough River Lake water level

Today's reading against full pool and Rough River Lake's own seasonal history.

Searched “Rough River lake level” or “lake level for Rough River Lake”? Same lake, same reading — you're in the right place. The current reading is right here too, whether you typed “current Rough River Lake water level” or “current water level at Rough River Lake”.

FULL POOL 490 492 494 496
Elevation, feet (NGVD29)

as of September 23, 2026

490.06 ft NGVD29

level 4.9 ft below full pool — on the low side for late September

Reading comes straight from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data (USACE lake gauge) and updates live when you load this page.


Is Rough River Lake full?

Not quite — 4.9 ft below full pool as of September 23, 2026

How full is Rough River Lake? Not as a percentage: no storage figure comes through with this gauge reading, and a share of capacity worked out from the elevation alone would be a guess — how much water a reservoir holds at a given level is a curve only the operator's own capacity table knows. Feet from full pool is what the operator publishes, and it is the figure above.


Rough River Lake through the year

The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 2003–2026. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.

full pool 470 480 490 500 510 JFMAMJJASOND
Median and normal range by day of year, 2003–2026 · elevation, feet (NGVD29)

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.

full pool 480 500 520 JFMAMJJASOND
  • 2026 (this year)
  • 2025 (last year)
  • 2008 (wettest on record)
  • 2023 (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 495.00 ft NGVD29 · per USACE Louisville District full-pool reference
Gauge USACE lake gauge · U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data
Datum NGVD29 — Top of the conservation pool is 495.0 ft in summer; the winter guide is 470 ft.
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

What is the lake level for Rough River Lake today?

Rough River Lake is at 490.06 ft (NGVD29) as of September 23, 2026 — 4.9 ft below full pool — on the low side for late September.

Is Rough River Lake full?

Not quite — at 490.06 ft on September 23, 2026, Rough River Lake is 4.9 ft below its full pool of 495.00 ft (NGVD29).

How full is Rough River Lake?

Not as a percentage: no storage figure comes through with this gauge reading, and a share of capacity worked out from the elevation alone would be a guess — how much water a reservoir holds at a given level is a curve only the operator's own capacity table knows. Feet from full pool is what the operator publishes, and it is the figure above.

What is full pool for Rough River Lake?

Full pool (the conservation pool) for Rough River Lake is 495.00 ft NGVD29, per USACE Louisville District full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.