Carter Lake lake and shoreline

Carter Lake Water Level

Colorado

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Lake-specific pages: Weather · Lake level.

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Carter Lake

Carter Lake is currently at a water-surface elevation of 5706.6 feet.

5706.63 ft · Updated 2 days ago · U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)

Current level

5,706.63ft

Status unavailable

Since last reading

Down 0.25 ft

Previous readingOct 235,706.88 ft

7-day change

Down 2.29 ft

7-day trend: Falling

8 daily readings in the last 7 days

30-day change

Down 11.17 ft

29 daily readings in the last 30 days

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Water Level History

Current
5706.63 ft
24h
-0.25 ft
7d
-2.29 ft
30d
-11.17 ft

Elevation (ft) Water-surface elevation (ft)

Reference line is designed full pool.

Water Temperature

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Lake Level Context

Current lake level

Carter Lake is currently 5706.63 ft. The lake has fallen 2.29 ft over the past 7 days and 11.17 ft over the past 30 days.

Carter Lake Level Details

Reference elevations, recent daily readings, data sources, and answers to common questions.

Conditions & Reference

Level status

Summary updating

This comparison needs the current level and full pool. We use the live feed when present, otherwise the latest daily summary when it includes a pool comparison.

DatumVertical reference for published pool and stage elevations at this lake (from the lake catalog).
Water-surface elevation (ft)
Elevation reference
Not available
Source
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)

Reference levels

No published reference elevations for this lake.

Surrounding county drought

Extreme Drought

100% of surrounding county in official drought (D1–D4).

Severity

NoneExtreme
Trend
Improving

Surrounding county drought

Larimer County, CO

Extreme Drought

Extreme Drought. The largest share of Larimer County, CO is in Extreme Drought (D3), an official USDM drought category. These figures describe the surrounding county from the lake location, not the lake itself.. Trend: Improving compared with last week. Official drought (D1–D4) yes

Severity

NoneExtreme

Weekly trend

Improving

Compared with last week

Official drought (D1–D4)

Yes

100% of the surrounding county is in official drought categories (D1–D4). Dominant category remains Extreme Drought.

Typical county impacts (USDM guidance)

  • Significantly reduced streamflows in the surrounding county
  • Dry vegetation and elevated wildfire risk for the area
  • Nearby water-use restrictions may apply

U.S. Drought Monitor · map date Oct 20, 2026. Updated weekly. Official drought means U.S. Drought Monitor categories D1–D4 (Moderate through Exceptional). Abnormally Dry (D0) is not counted as official drought. droughtmonitor.unl.eduView drought map for Larimer County, CO

Daily level summary

DateLevelChange
Oct 24, 20265,706.63-0.25
Oct 23, 20265,706.88-0.34
Oct 22, 20265,707.22-0.28
Oct 21, 20265,707.5-0.29
Oct 20, 20265,707.79-0.3
Oct 19, 20265,708.09-0.38
Oct 18, 20265,708.47-0.45

Common questions about Carter Lake’s water level

  • The current water level at Carter Lake is 5,706.63 ft (updated 2 days ago). You can track the Carter Lake lake level on the interactive chart and daily history above.

  • The current 7-day trend for the Carter Lake lake level is falling — falling about 2.29 ft over the past week. See the history chart above for the full picture.

  • Readings refresh when U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) publishes new gauge data — typically daily for most reservoirs. The timestamp above the chart shows when the latest observation arrived on Lake Insights.

Lake level glossary

Definitions for pool targets, datums, and how elevation readings are labeled.

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