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Lake Cherokee Water Level Today

Daily level, percent full and history for Lake Cherokee, on the Cherokee Bayou in Texas.

Updated · Source: Texas Water Development BoardTWDB

Water level

276.97ft

msl · Daily reading for Nov 9, 2026

  • 3.03 ftbelow full pool (280.0 ft)
  • 75.9%full
  • −0.01 ftin 24 h+0.03 ft in 7 days−0.43 ft in 30 days
276278280282276278280282276278280282
  • Full pool
  • 1 yr ago

Storage 30,449 of 40,094 acre-ft

Is Lake Cherokee full?

No. Lake Cherokee is 75.9% full, 3.03 ft below full pool. It is 2.85 ft lower than a year ago (279.82 ft on Nov 9, 2025).

Lake Cherokee level history

Full pool 280.0 ft
View data table
DateLevel (ft)% full
Nov 9, 2026276.9775.9%
Nov 8, 2026276.9876.0%
Nov 7, 2026277.0076.2%
Nov 6, 2026277.0276.3%
Nov 5, 2026277.0476.5%
Nov 4, 2026277.0676.6%
Nov 3, 2026277.0176.2%
Nov 2, 2026276.9475.7%
Nov 1, 2026276.9475.7%
Oct 31, 2026276.9475.7%
Oct 30, 2026276.9175.5%
Oct 29, 2026276.9475.7%
Oct 28, 2026276.9575.8%
Oct 27, 2026276.9675.9%
Oct 26, 2026276.9876.0%
Oct 25, 2026277.0076.2%
Oct 24, 2026277.0276.3%
Oct 23, 2026277.0576.5%
Oct 22, 2026277.0776.7%
Oct 21, 2026277.0976.8%
Oct 20, 2026277.1277.1%
Oct 19, 2026277.1577.3%
Oct 18, 2026277.1877.5%
Oct 17, 2026277.2277.8%
Oct 16, 2026277.2778.2%
Oct 15, 2026277.3278.6%
Oct 14, 2026277.3278.6%
Oct 13, 2026277.3378.7%
Oct 12, 2026277.3578.8%
Oct 11, 2026277.3779.0%
Oct 10, 2026277.4079.2%
  • Lake Cherokee level
  • Full pool 280.0 ft
  • Above full pool
Source: TWDB · Daily readings since 2017

Lake Cherokee on Nov 9 in past years

Lake Cherokee water level on Nov 9 in past years
YearLevel (ft)vs today% full
2026today276.97—
75.9%
2025279.82+2.85
99.3%
2024279.82+2.85
99.3%
2023277.26+0.29
78.1%
2022278.17+1.20
85.2%
2021278.75+1.78
90.0%
2020279.58+2.61
97.1%
2019279.37+2.40
95.2%
2018280.68+3.71
100%above full pool
2017279.07+2.10
92.7%

Today’s level is the lowest for Nov 9 in records going back to 2017.

Lake facts

Full pool (conservation pool)
280.0 ft msl
Dead pool
260.00 ft msl
Conservation capacity
40,094 acre-ft
Surface area today
2,990 acres
Highest since 2017
282.89 ftApr 10, 2024
Lowest since 2017
276.91 ftOct 30, 2026
Data since
Feb 14, 2017
Dam
Lake Cherokee Damcompleted 1948
River
Cherokee Bayou
Owned by
Cherokee Water Company
Dam location
Rusk County
Gauge location
32.3692, −94.6686

Dam, river and owner from the National Inventory of Dams (USACE). Records cover Feb 14, 2017 to today (daily averages).

Lake Cherokee map and depth

  • Dam
  • Level gauge
Shoreline © OpenStreetMap contributors · Open the full map
Average depth when full
about 7 ftcapacity ÷ surface area
Average depth today
about 10 ftstorage ÷ surface area today
Surface area
about 5,430 acresmeasured on the OpenStreetMap outline
Height of Lake Cherokee Dam
45 ftNational Inventory of Dams

The outline shows the mapped shoreline, not today’s water line: when the lake is low, the water stands back from it.

Weather on the lake

  1. Today73°FHighLow 50°FCalmPatchy Fog then Partly Sunny
  2. Tonight50°FLowCalmMostly Cloudy
  3. Tuesday77°FHighLow 53°FCalmSunny
  4. Wednesday78°FHighLow 50°FW 0–10 mphMostly Sunny
  5. Thursday71°FHighLow 41°FNW 10–15 mphSunny
  6. Friday64°FHighLow 37°FN 0–5 mphSunny
  7. Saturday66°FHighLow 41°FSE 0–5 mphSunny

Forecast: National Weather Service for the dam area (32.37, −94.67). Wind speeds are forecasts, not measurements.

Nearby lakes

Quick answers

What is the full pool level of Lake Cherokee?
280.0 ft above mean sea level, the top of its conservation pool. Above it, water is released or flows over the spillway of Lake Cherokee Dam.
How much does Lake Cherokee need to be full?
Lake Cherokee needs 3.03 ft more water to reach full pool (280.0 ft), or about 9,645 acre-ft of storage, as of Nov 9, 2026.
How deep is Lake Cherokee?
Lake Cherokee is about 7 ft deep on average when full: 40,094 acre-ft of storage spread over about 5,430 acres of surface. At today’s level the average depth is about 10 ft. As in most reservoirs, the deepest water is in the old river channel near Lake Cherokee Dam.
Is Lake Cherokee rising or falling?
It is steady: +0.03 ft in the last 7 days and −0.01 ft in 24 hours, to 276.97 ft on Nov 9, 2026 (Texas Water Development Board).
When was Lake Cherokee last full?
It was last at or above full pool (280.0 ft) on Jul 16, 2026. On Nov 9, 2026 it was 3.03 ft below.
What is the highest level in our data?
Lake Cherokee reached 282.89 ft on Apr 10, 2024. The lowest was 276.91 ft on Oct 30, 2026 (TWDB data since 2017; older records are not in this data set).
How much has Lake Cherokee changed in the last year?
In the last 12 months it ranged from 276.91 ft (Oct 30, 2026) to 280.64 ft (Mar 12, 2026), a swing of 3.73 ft.
How often is this page updated?
This page is updated every morning with the daily reading published by the Texas Water Development Board. The last reading is from Nov 9, 2026.

Where this data comes from

Daily reservoir data from the Texas Water Development Board (Lake Cherokee on waterdatafortexas.org). Updated every morning. Weather from the National Weather Service. Dam details from the National Inventory of Dams.

Lake Levels Daily is an independent site, not affiliated with TWDB, LCRA, USACE, USGS, NOAA, TVA or any lake operator. Check official sources before making safety decisions.