Barren River Lake water level: Barren River 
9.2 ft low
Barren River Lake is 9.2 ft below full pool, about normal for early November. The Barren River Lake Dam gauge read 542.84 ft at 7:00 AM EST, November 4, 2026.
How Barren River stands today
In early November Barren River normally sits near 543.23 ft, 8.8 ft under full pool, so most of today's gap is the usual seasonal drawdown.
- 542.84 Feet above sea level7:00 AM EST, November 4, 2026, NGVD29 datum.
- −9.16 Feet from full poolFull pool today is 552.00 ft.
- 53.8 Percent of conservation storageWater held above bottom of normal, as a share of the pool's capacity.
- −0.39 Feet from normal for Nov 4Median of 2002–2025 is 543.23 ft. Today ranks in the 42nd percentile.
- −2.49 Feet from a year ago545.33 ft on November 4, 2025.
- −8.37 Feet over 30 days−4.63 ft over the past 7 days.
The past year, day by day
The shaded band is where Barren River usually sits on each date: the middle 80% of years from 2002 to 2025. The blue line is the past 12 months; the sand line is the 12 months before. Hover or use the arrow keys to read any day.
- Past 12 months
- The 12 months before
- Normal range (middle 80% of years)
- Median
- Full pool
Monthly average since 2006
Readings for the last 30 days
| Date | Level (ft) | Normal (ft) |
|---|---|---|
| November 4, 2026 | 542.86 | 543.23 |
| November 3, 2026 | 543.32 | 543.78 |
| November 2, 2026 | 544.01 | 544.44 |
| November 1, 2026 | 544.72 | 545.06 |
| October 31, 2026 | 545.41 | 545.54 |
| October 30, 2026 | 546.10 | 545.83 |
| October 29, 2026 | 546.79 | 546.15 |
| October 28, 2026 | 547.47 | 546.49 |
| October 27, 2026 | 548.14 | 546.89 |
| October 26, 2026 | 548.80 | 547.16 |
| October 25, 2026 | 549.31 | 547.42 |
| October 24, 2026 | 549.79 | 547.72 |
| October 23, 2026 | 550.25 | 548.15 |
| October 22, 2026 | 550.48 | 548.59 |
| October 21, 2026 | 550.67 | 548.98 |
| Date | Level (ft) | Normal (ft) |
|---|---|---|
| October 20, 2026 | 550.74 | 549.38 |
| October 19, 2026 | 550.79 | 549.77 |
| October 18, 2026 | 550.83 | 550.06 |
| October 17, 2026 | 550.88 | 550.44 |
| October 16, 2026 | 550.93 | 550.78 |
| October 15, 2026 | 550.93 | 550.98 |
| October 14, 2026 | 550.90 | 551.14 |
| October 13, 2026 | 550.93 | 551.26 |
| October 12, 2026 | 550.97 | 551.37 |
| October 11, 2026 | 550.98 | 551.48 |
| October 10, 2026 | 550.96 | 551.52 |
| October 9, 2026 | 551.00 | 551.51 |
| October 8, 2026 | 551.06 | 551.48 |
| October 7, 2026 | 551.11 | 551.47 |
| October 6, 2026 | 551.16 | 551.48 |
Is the water above your dock?
Enter the elevation of your dock, ramp end or a mark on your shoreline, in feet above sea level (NGVD29, the datum the Army Corps of Engineers uses for this gauge). You will see how far the water is above or below it today, and how often it dipped below it in each month since 2016.
| Month | Low year (10th %) | Median | High year (90th %) | Days above your mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 528.29 | 530.76 | 550.05 | — |
| February | 528.30 | 535.87 | 569.49 | — |
| March | 529.60 | 553.89 | 576.12 | — |
| April | 540.13 | 552.50 | 577.15 | — |
| May | 545.45 | 552.94 | 570.33 | — |
| June | 552.13 | 552.64 | 566.13 | — |
| July | 552.19 | 552.57 | 557.87 | — |
| August | 552.23 | 552.39 | 552.67 | — |
| September | 551.86 | 552.25 | 553.00 | — |
| October | 546.41 | 551.10 | 553.66 | — |
| November | 529.42 | 537.24 | 546.75 | — |
| December | 528.26 | 529.15 | 543.14 | — |
Other Kentucky lakes, lowest first
| Lake | Level (ft) | Vs full pool |
|---|---|---|
 Laurel River Lake | 999.31 | 19.2 ft below |
 Grayson Lake | 642.68 | — |
 Paintsville Lake | 708.55 | 98.8% full |
| Yatesville Lake | 629.45 | 100.4% full |
 Rough River Lake | 481.89 | 37.4% full |
| Green River Lake | 673.72 | 80.8% full |
| Taylorsville Lake | 545.74 | 36.7% full |
 Carr Creek Lake | 1,023.22 | 47.0% full |
 Lake Cumberland | 691.12 | 31.9 ft below |
 Dale Hollow Lake | 638.25 | 12.8 ft below |
 Kentucky Lake | 354.68 | At pool |
 Lake Barkley | 354.75 | 4.3 ft below |
| Buckhorn Lake | 780.76 | 37.4% full |
 Nolin River Lake | 511.56 | 82.0% full |
Barren River questions
What is full pool at Barren River Lake?
Full pool at Barren River Lake is 552.00 ft above sea level today. The agency's own term for it is “top of conservation.”
Is Barren River Lake full right now?
No. It is 9.2 ft below full pool and holds 53.8% of its conservation storage. In early November Barren River normally sits near 543.23 ft, 8.8 ft under full pool, so most of today's gap is the usual seasonal drawdown.
Is Barren River Lake lower than normal for early November?
No, it is close to normal. The median level on Nov 4 across 2002–2025 is 543.23 ft, and today's 542.84 ft is −0.39 ft from it. In 8 of 10 years the level on this date fell between 541.59 and 546.23 ft.
How does Barren River Lake compare with last year?
A year ago, on November 4, 2025, it stood at 545.33 ft. It is 2.49 ft lower now.
What are the highest and lowest levels since 2002?
In the daily record we hold, which starts in 2002, the highest daily level was 586.04 ft on April 16, 2025 and the lowest was 527.10 ft on January 4, 2002.
How often is this page updated?
We pull new readings from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers several times a day. This page was last rebuilt on Wed, 04 Nov 2026 13:52:28 UTC. Readings are provisional and can be revised by the agency.