Minnesota · USACE St. Paul District (MVP)

Lake Winnibigoshish water level

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

FULL POOL 1294 1296 1298
Elevation, feet (NGVD29)

as of August 15, 2026

1297.98 ft NGVD29

level 0.5 ft below full pool — on the low side for mid-August

Reading comes straight from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data (USACE series MissHW_Winni.Elev.Inst.~15Minutes.0.best-NGVD29) and updates live when you load this page.


Lake Winnibigoshish through the year

The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 1990–2026. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.

full pool 1297 1298 1299 JFMAMJJASOND
Median and normal range by day of year, 1990–2026 · 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 1297 1298 1299 1300 JFMAMJJASOND
  • 2019 (wettest on record)
  • 2006 (driest on record)
  • 2025 (last year)
  • 2026 (this 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 1298.44 ft NGVD29 · per USACE St. Paul District (MVP) full-pool reference
Gauge USACE series MissHW_Winni.Elev.Inst.~15Minutes.0.best-NGVD29 · U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data
Datum NGVD29 — 1298.44 ft = CWMS 'Top of Normal' (Bottom of Normal 1297.94; regulating band seasonal 1296.94-1298.19).
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 Lake Winnibigoshish right now?

Lake Winnibigoshish is at 1297.98 ft (NGVD29) as of August 15, 2026 — 0.5 ft below full pool — on the low side for mid-August

Is Lake Winnibigoshish full?

Not quite — at 1297.98 ft, Lake Winnibigoshish is 0.5 ft below its full pool of 1298.44 ft (NGVD29).

What is full pool for Lake Winnibigoshish?

Full pool (the conservation pool) for Lake Winnibigoshish is 1298.44 ft NGVD29, per USACE St. Paul District (MVP) full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.