Highest elevation lakes & reservoirs in by altitude
While lake levels can flucuate frequently based on several circumstances, the altitude/elevation of a lake is based on its normal water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level. For a reservoir, this water level is also known as “full pond” or “full pool”.Low lake levels can occur due to deliberate seasonal draw downs for irrigation or impending snow melt, reduced water inflows, drought and evaporation, residential or commercial water demands, and hydropower generation. Some lakes’ minimum and maximum elevations are virtually the same. Lakes that generate hydropower may vary by several feet – according to power demand. Lakes whose primary purpose is to prevent flooding can seasonally vary by 100 feet or more. When some lakes reach their minimum elevation, their boat ramps may not be long enough to permit boat access – and boats docked on shallow parts of the lake may end up on dry ground. In those cases, kayakers and shore-based anglers may be among the few happy recreational users of the lake.
A lake’s highest water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level, that can occur during flooding. A lake’s highest possible maximum elevation is usually the top of the lake’s dam or spillway. At lakes that include residential development, government regulations usually forbid the construction of homes below a lake’s maximum elevation.
You can find many of the world’s highest-elevated lakes on LakeLubbers. Lakes with the lowest elevations (known by LakeLubbers) are shown on the final page of that list. Note: For some lakes, "Altitude/Elevation" data is unknown, so this table may display fewer lakes than the total 2151 articles we have published for lakes.
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Below are lakes within Compared by highest altitude/elevation in feet. This list does not represent all lakes in , only the 2151 lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name | Elevation in feet | Lake description |
---|---|---|
Lake Sharpe, SD (Great Lakes Region, SD, South Dakota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,422 ft | Lake Sharpe, located on South Dakota Highways 50 and 47 near Chamberlain, and Reliance, is one of the four reservoirs constructed along the Missouri R … |
Spirit Lake, IA (Iowa, Northwest Iowa, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,406 ft | Also known as Big Spirit Lake Spirit Lake is one of a chain of lakes known as Iowa’s Great Lakes. Also called Big Spirit Lake, this natural body of water was named by the Dakota Na … |
West Okoboji Lake, IA (Iowa, Northwest Iowa, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,400 ft | Also known as West Lake Okoboji West Okoboji Lake is one of Iowa’s eight Great Lakes located in Dickinson County. It was named “Minnetonka” by the Sioux Indians meaning “Great Waters … |
John W. Flannagan Reservoir, VA (Heart of Appalachia Region, VA, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
1,396 ft | Also known as Flannagan Reservoir The John W. Flannagan Reservoir is a 1,145-acre lake located in Dickenson County in the southwest Heart of Appalachia region of Virginia. Named in hon … |
White Iron Lake (Minnesota, Northeast Minnesota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,393 ft | White Iron Lake is part of a chain of lakes in St. Louis County, Minnesota that also includes Garden Lake, Farm Lake, and South Farm Lake. Part of the … |
Burntside Lake, MN (Minnesota, Northeast Minnesota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,375 ft | Burntside Lake is an impressive nine-mile long lake in St. Louis County, Minnesota. With a surface area of 7,314 acres and no motor restrictions, Burn … |
Lake Francis Case, SD (Great Lakes Region, SD, South Dakota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,375 ft | Lake Francis Case, one of the most popular recreation spots in the Great Plains, is located along the Missouri River in south-central South Dakota. La … |
Allegheny Reservoir, NY/PA (Chautauqua-Allegheny Region, NY, New York, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Wilds Region, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
1,365 ft | Also known as Kinzua Dam Lake, Kinzua Lake, Lake Kinzua Flowing across tree-covered hills in northwestern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York, the Allegheny Reservoir’s 12,080 acres provide an open invit … |
Lake Vermilion, MN (Minnesota, Northeast Minnesota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,360 ft | Known as “Lake of the Sunset Glow” by its ancient Ojibwe inhabitants, northeastern Minnesota’s sunny Lake Vermilion is a positively ideal getaway. Thi … |
Smith Lake (Central Minnesota, Minnesota, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,351 ft | Nestled quietly between Lake Osakis and the City of Alexandria, Smith Lake in Minnesota’s Central Region faces little tourist pressure. Not well known … |
El Dorado Lake, KS (Kansas, South Central Kansas, US Midwest Region, USA) |
1,347 ft | Completed in 1981, South Central Kansas’ El Dorado Lake is an 8,000-acre reservoir bordering the stunning tall grass prairies and rolling mounds of th … |
Round Lake, WI (Lake Superior Northwoods Region, WI, US Midwest Region, USA, Wisconsin) |
1,347 ft | Also known as Hayward Lakes Nestled in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, Round Lake in Sawyer County is a fantastic place to boat and fish. Part of the Hayward Lakes that include Grindston … |