Blue Mesa Reservoir is managed by U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; NPS Curecanti National Recreation Area. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Published reference elevations are listed below.
Lake Status
105.49 feet below full pool
−105.49 ft vs full pool
- 7-day trend
- Falling
- 7-day change
- Down 1.00 ft
- 30-day change
- Down 12.64 ft
- Last updated
- Sep 22 • 1:00 AM
Blue Mesa Reservoir is currently 105.49 feet below full pool and has been falling over the past week. Readings show continued drawdown relative to full pool, with levels trending lower over the past week.
Watershed drought conditions
Gunnison County, CO · surrounding county from lake location
Extreme Drought
Extreme drought conditions are present.
Severity
Weekly trend
Improving
Compared with last week
Official drought
Yes
100% of the watershed is currently classified as official drought (D1+).
Expected impacts
- Significantly reduced stream inflows
- Lake levels may fall quickly without heavy rain
- Dry vegetation and elevated wildfire risk
- Water use restrictions may apply nearby
U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Sep 15, 2026. Updated weekly. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Gunnison County, CO
Key Facts
Managing authority
Waterbody / project type
Official purposes
Full pool
Datum
Current-level source
Project / NID identifier
Dam / watershed (NID design values)
Static design values from a confidently matched National Inventory of Dams record — not live gage readings.
- Normal storage
- 748,430 acre-ft
- Max storage
- 940,700 acre-ft
- Surface area at normal pool
- 9,180 acres
- Drainage area
- 3,429 sq mi
- Spillway capacity (design)
- 33,700 cfs
- Dam structure
- Earth · 390 ft high · completed 1966
- Hazard classification
- High
- Safety & inspection
- last inspection Jul 18, 2023
National Inventory of Dams · matched record: Blue Mesa Dam (CO01675)
How this lake is operated
- Documented project purposes (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Hydroelectric, Irrigation, Recreation.
Why the level can change
General factors for reservoirs like this
These are common influences for this type of lake. They do not identify the cause of a specific current change unless an operator update confirms it.
Rainfall & inflows
Rain and upstream river inflows can raise reservoir levels, especially after storms.
Downstream releases
When an operator releases water through a dam, reservoir storage can fall and downstream flows can rise.
Flood-risk operations
Some projects store or release water under flood-risk rules when conditions require it.
Water supply
Some reservoirs support municipal, industrial, irrigation, or regional water-supply needs.
Hydropower
Hydropower projects may pass water through turbines when generating electricity.
Seasonal weather
Dry periods, heat, evaporation, and seasonal rainfall patterns can affect storage over weeks and months.
Published reference elevations
- Full pool
- 7519.00 ft
Published reference elevation. Not necessarily a fixed year-round target for every project.
Current data source
Managing authority: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; NPS Curecanti National Recreation Area
Observation source used by Lake Insights: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Who manages the lake and who publishes the reading Lake Insights displays can differ. Lake Insights does not invent a source label from the managing authority alone.
General education
Shared background — not lake-specific facts
Lake Insights aggregates water level information from authoritative public sources such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA, TVA, Bureau of Reclamation, power utilities, and other official lake operators. We preserve historical observations, calculate trends, and present lake conditions in a consistent format. For U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, we link to the official source whenever it is available. Lake Insights does not predict future lake levels unless an official forecast has been published by the managing authority.
Common questions about Blue Mesa Reservoir
- Who manages Blue Mesa Reservoir?
- Blue Mesa Reservoir is managed by U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; NPS Curecanti National Recreation Area. Lake Insights reports published gauge readings; it does not operate the waterbody.
- What is full pool at Blue Mesa Reservoir?
- The published full-pool elevation for Blue Mesa Reservoir is 7519.00 ft (NAVD88). Full pool is a published reference elevation — not a prediction of today’s level.
- Where does Lake Insights get the level reading for Blue Mesa Reservoir?
- Lake Insights displays the latest available elevation for Blue Mesa Reservoir from U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The managing authority (U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; NPS Curecanti National Recreation Area) may differ from the agency that publishes the observation used on this page.
- What datum is used for Blue Mesa Reservoir?
- Elevations for Blue Mesa Reservoir are referenced to NAVD88 (MSL).
- What are the documented purposes of Blue Mesa Reservoir?
- Documented purposes for Blue Mesa Reservoir (National Inventory of Dams): Flood Risk Reduction, Hydroelectric, Irrigation, Recreation.