2959.62 ft project datum
level Reading is unusually low for mid-August.
Reading comes straight from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data (USACE series BFR.Elev.Inst.1Hour.0.Best-NWO) and updates live when you load this page.
Belle Fourche Reservoir through the year
The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 2012–2026. 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 (this year)
- 2025 (last year)
- 2023 (wettest on record)
- 2017 (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 | not published by the operator |
|---|---|
| Gauge | USACE series BFR.Elev.Inst.1Hour.0.Best-NWO · U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Access to Water data |
| Datum | project datum — The district publishes the gauge in the project's own datum. |
| Last verified | August 20, 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 Belle Fourche Reservoir right now?
Belle Fourche Reservoir is at 2959.62 ft (project datum) as of August 20, 2026 — Reading is unusually low for mid-August.
Is Belle Fourche Reservoir full?
Bureau of Reclamation (Belle Fourche Dam) doesn't publish a conservation-pool figure for Belle Fourche Reservoir, so this page shows the reading against the lake's own seasonal history instead.
What is full pool for Belle Fourche Reservoir?
Bureau of Reclamation (Belle Fourche Dam) doesn't publish a single conservation-pool elevation for Belle Fourche Reservoir. The seasonal chart shows the range the lake actually runs instead.