Blue Mountain Lake lake and shoreline

About Blue Mountain Lake

Officially Blue Mountain Lake (Little Red River)

Arkansas

Blue Mountain Lake is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Lake Insights displays its latest available elevation from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Published reference elevations are listed below.

Lake Status

15.37 feet below full pool

−15.37 ft vs full pool

7-day trend
Falling
7-day change
Down 0.18 ft
30-day change
Down 4.48 ft
Last updated
19 hours ago

Blue Mountain Lake is currently 15.37 feet below full pool and has fallen slightly over the past week. Readings show continued drawdown relative to full pool, with levels trending lower over the past week.

Key Facts

Waterbody / project type

Reservoir

Official purposes

RecreationSource: National Inventory of Dams

Full pool

387.00 ft

Winter pool

384.00 ftElevation published; seasonal dates not verified

Flood stage

419.00 ft

Datum

NGVD29 · MSL

Current-level source

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Project / NID identifier

Blue Basin Lake Dam · AR00390

Dam / watershed (NID design values)

Static design values from a confidently matched National Inventory of Dams record — not live gage readings.

Normal storage
195 acre-ft
Max storage
225 acre-ft
Dam structure
Earth · 15 ft high · completed 1967
Hazard classification
Low
Safety & inspection
Not Rated

National Inventory of Dams · matched record: Blue Basin Lake Dam (AR00390)

How this lake is operated

  • Documented project purposes (National Inventory of Dams): 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
387.00 ft

Published reference elevation. Not necessarily a fixed year-round target for every project.

Winter / seasonal pool
384.00 ft

A winter / seasonal pool elevation is published, but Lake Insights does not have verified seasonal operating dates for this lake.

Flood stage
419.00 ft

Flood stage is not interchangeable with flood pool.

Current data source

Managing authority: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Observation source used by Lake Insights: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

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. Army Corps of Engineers, 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.

How we source lake data · Glossary

Common questions about Blue Mountain Lake

Who manages Blue Mountain Lake?
Blue Mountain Lake is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Lake Insights reports published gauge readings; it does not operate the waterbody.
What is full pool at Blue Mountain Lake?
The published full-pool elevation for Blue Mountain Lake is 387.00 ft (NGVD29). Full pool is a published reference elevation — not a prediction of today’s level.
Does Blue Mountain Lake have a published winter pool?
Blue Mountain Lake has a published winter / seasonal pool elevation of 384.00 ft. Lake Insights does not currently have verified seasonal operating dates for this lake.
Where does Lake Insights get the level reading for Blue Mountain Lake?
Lake Insights displays the latest available elevation for Blue Mountain Lake from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The managing authority (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) may differ from the agency that publishes the observation used on this page.
What datum is used for Blue Mountain Lake?
Elevations for Blue Mountain Lake are referenced to NGVD29 (MSL).
What are the documented purposes of Blue Mountain Lake?
Documented purposes for Blue Mountain Lake (National Inventory of Dams): Recreation.

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