Overview
Lake Thunderbird is a roughly 5,400-acre reservoir on the Little River and Hog Creek in Cleveland County, about 13 miles east of Norman in central Oklahoma. It was created in the mid-1960s when the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation completed Norman Dam as the principal feature of the Norman Project, supplying municipal water to Norman, Midwest City, and Del City while also providing flood control and recreation.
OWRB mapping shows about 60 miles of shoreline and a maximum depth near 58 feet at the 1,039-foot conservation pool, with rolling oak-covered hills and sandy shores framing the basin. Lake Thunderbird State Park occupies much of the public shoreline.
The lake is a major Oklahoma City–metro recreation site for boating, camping, and fishing for largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, and sunfish. Fisheries are managed by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, with state park ramps, beaches, and campgrounds providing the primary public access.
The Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District operates the project for Reclamation; flood-control storage between 1,039 and 1,049.4 feet NGVD29 is regulated under Corps of Engineers direction (33 CFR 208.34). Water-supply demand and Little River runoff both move the pool, so monitoring current lake levels matters for boating, fishing, and shoreline use.
Current Conditions
Lake Thunderbird is currently 1.75 feet below full pool and has fallen slightly over the past week.
- 7-day trendFallingLatest movement can differ from the seven-day trend.
- 7-day changeDown 0.26 ft
- 30-day changeDown 1.10 ft
- Drought conditionsSevere Drought
- Active advisories3 active (Advisory)
About This Lake
Learn how this lake is managed, what affects its water level, and where Lake Insights gets its data.
Lake Thunderbird is a 5,377-acre reservoir on the Little River managed by U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.