Lake Blackshear Right Now
Lake Blackshear's water level has been falling over the past week. Watershed conditions are abnormally dry. Today's forecast calls for mostly sunny.
- 7-day level change
- Down 0.09 feet
- Forecast high
- 83°F
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Overview
Lake Blackshear is an approximately 8,700-acre reservoir on the Flint River in southwest Georgia, bordering Crisp, Dooly, Lee, Sumter, and Worth counties near Cordele. It was created in 1930 when the Crisp County Power Commission completed Warwick Dam, the first county-owned hydroelectric dam in the United States. The lake is still owned and operated by the Power Commission to generate low-cost electricity for Crisp County, and it doubles as a major regional recreation resource.
Blackshear is a long, narrow lowland lake stretching about 20 miles along the Flint River, averaging only about 11 feet deep and reaching near 47 feet in the old channel, with roughly 97 miles of shoreline. Its signature feature is standing and submerged cypress and abundant stumps, particularly on the upper half of the lake, which create outstanding fish habitat but demand careful navigation by boaters.
The lake is a productive warmwater fishery for largemouth bass, crappie, bream, and catfish, and it is a popular boating and camping destination anchored by Georgia Veterans State Park on its western shore. Fisheries are managed by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and public boat ramps and marinas provide broad access.
Water levels on Lake Blackshear are managed by the Crisp County Power Commission around a normal full pool of 237 feet above mean sea level. Rainfall on the Flint River can push levels above that, and the Power Commission occasionally schedules publicized drawdowns for dam maintenance and to let shoreline owners repair docks and seawalls, so monitoring current lake levels is helpful for boating, fishing, and dock access.
Lake Blackshear is a 8,700-acre reservoir on the Flint River managed by Crisp County Power Commission.