Kentucky Lake water level
Tennessee River · Kentucky · operated by TVA (Kentucky Dam)
By Michael, independent developer behind zovo.one. Readings pulled live from the same USACE feed the operator reports to.
Kentucky Lake is at 354.6 ft as of Nov 5, 2026, per USACE data: 0.2 ft above the 354.4 ft seasonal target and 4.4 ft below the 359 ft full pool.
Kentucky Lake today: level, trend, source and access
Level against full pool
On Nov 5, 2026 the surface sat at 354.6 ft, 4.4 ft below the full-pool mark of 359 ft.
Level against the seasonal target
Tennessee Valley Authority runs Kentucky Lake on a seasonal guide curve, so the level it aims for changes through the year. For Nov 5, 2026 the guide curve is 354.4 ft, 4.6 ft under the 359 ft summer level, and the target is falling. The surface, at 354.6 ft, is 0.2 ft above that target and 4.4 ft below the full-pool mark of 359 ft. So the lake is where its operator wants it for the date; the gap to full pool is the planned seasonal drawdown, not a shortage.
TVA lowers Kentucky Lake about 5 ft each fall to make room for winter and spring flood water on the Tennessee River, holds it near 354 ft through the winter for navigation, and fills it back to the 359 ft summer pool in April.
Between two dates the target moves in a straight line, as the published curve does. The CWMS series steps in 0.1 ft increments; the straight lines between these breakpoints match it within 0.1 ft. Source: USACE CWMS Data API, office LRD, time series "Kentucky-Lake.Elev.Inst.1Day.0.Guide Curve" (daily values 26 Oct 2025 to 26 Oct 2026), read on Oct 26, 2026. Operator page: TVA Kentucky Reservoir operating guide. The operator can deviate from its curve for floods, droughts or dam work.
Trend
Between Oct 7 and Nov 5 (29 days) the level fell 0.4 ft, about 0.1 ft a week. The high in that window was 355.0 ft on Oct 9 and the low was 354.1 ft on Oct 16. In the last 7 days it fell 0.1 ft. The last 24 hours changed it by less than 0.1 ft.
Data source
The elevation comes from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers CWMS Data API, Kentucky Dam pool, TVA reading carried by USACE Nashville District, office LRN, time series KYDK2-KENTUCKY.Elev-Pool.Inst.1Hour.0.tva-raw, last reported Nov 5, 2026. Feet from full pool, the trend and the figures above are computed from that reading and the published full-pool elevation; none is typed by hand. TVA (Kentucky Dam) runs the dam on the Tennessee River.
Recreation status
Status: at seasonal target. At 4.4 ft below full pool, the shallowest ramps can be out of the water. Check the one you plan to use with TVA (Kentucky Dam). Against the seasonal target the lake is 0.2 ft above the level TVA plans for this date.
Check an elevation against full pool
For readers outside the U.S., the surface of Kentucky Lake is about 108.1 m above sea level, and full pool is about 109.4 m.
Check any elevation yourself. Type a level in feet above sea level (a ramp cutoff, a marina mark) to see how far it sits below full pool and in meters.