Montana · Bureau of Reclamation

Hungry Horse Reservoir water level

Today's reading against full pool and Hungry Horse Reservoir's own seasonal history.

FULL POOL 3520 3540 3560
Elevation, feet (NGVD29)

as of August 15, 2026

3553.31 ft NGVD29

level 6.7 ft below full pool — typical for mid-August

Reading comes straight from U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System (USGS gauge 12362000) and updates live when you load this page.


Hungry Horse Reservoir through the year

The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 1980–2006. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.

full pool 3400 3450 3500 3550 JFMAMJJASOND
Median and normal range by day of year, 1980–2006 · 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 3400 3450 3500 3550 JFMAMJJASOND
  • 2005 (wettest on record)
  • 1993 (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 3560.00 ft NGVD29 · per Bureau of Reclamation full-pool reference
Conservation capacity 3,467,179 acre-feet · per Bureau of Reclamation capacity reference
Gauge USGS gauge 12362000 · U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System
Datum NGVD29
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 Hungry Horse Reservoir right now?

Hungry Horse Reservoir is at 3553.31 ft (NGVD29) as of August 15, 2026 — 6.7 ft below full pool — typical for mid-August

Is Hungry Horse Reservoir full?

Not quite — at 3553.31 ft, Hungry Horse Reservoir is 6.7 ft below its full pool of 3560.00 ft (NGVD29).

What is full pool for Hungry Horse Reservoir?

Full pool (the conservation pool) for Hungry Horse Reservoir is 3560.00 ft NGVD29, per Bureau of Reclamation full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.