lakedates.com

Washington · Chelan County PUD (FERC 637)

Lake Chelan water level

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

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

FULL POOL 1096 1098 1100
Elevation, feet (project datum (lake surface asl))

as of September 23, 2026

1098.45 ft project datum (lake surface asl)

level 1.5 ft below full pool — typical for late September

Reading comes straight from U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System (USGS gauge 12452000) and updates live when you load this page.

Is Lake Chelan full?

Not quite — 1.5 ft below full pool as of September 23, 2026

How full is Lake Chelan? 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.

Lake Chelan through the year

The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 1980–2026. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.

full pool 1085 1090 1095 1100 JFMAMJJASOND
Median and normal range by day of year, 1980–2026 · elevation, feet (project datum (lake surface asl))

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 1080 1085 1090 1095 1100 JFMAMJJASOND
  • 2026 (this year)
  • 2025 (last year)
  • 1981 (wettest on record)
  • 1988 (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 1100.00 ft project datum (lake surface asl) · per Chelan County PUD (FERC 637) full-pool reference
Gauge USGS gauge 12452000 · U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System
Datum project datum (lake surface asl) — The gauge reads straight in lake elevation against a 1,100 ft maximum-capacity level; the PUD's licence lets Chelan run anywhere from 1,079 to 1,100 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 Lake Chelan today?

Lake Chelan is at 1098.45 ft (project datum (lake surface asl)) as of September 23, 2026 — 1.5 ft below full pool — typical for late September.

Is Lake Chelan full?

Not quite — at 1098.45 ft on September 23, 2026, Lake Chelan is 1.5 ft below its full pool of 1100.00 ft (project datum (lake surface asl)).

How full is Lake Chelan?

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 Lake Chelan?

Full pool (the conservation pool) for Lake Chelan is 1100.00 ft project datum (lake surface asl), per Chelan County PUD (FERC 637) full-pool reference. Levels above it use flood storage; levels below it are drawdown.