Category Archives: Boating, swimming and fishing

Info to help you find your way around our lakes

Boating, swimming and fishing, Uncategorized

Lake is still accessible to boats

The dock at Crescent Bay is high and icy, but the boat launch is still very usable, even if most of the bay is ice in background.
The dock at Crescent Bay is high and icy, but the boat launch is still very usable, even if most of the bay is ice in background.

I had a call from a guy on the coast wondering if he could still launch his boat on Lake Roosevelt this weekend if he brought his son over for a little winter fishing.
The answer: an emphatic yes, with footnotes.
Here’s the lake level situation and more.
Right now (about 3 pm, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2014), the lake level is predicted to “stabilize” at around 1,271 feet above sea level, or about 19 feet below the completely full mark.
That leaves most launches open, including Crescent Bay and Spring Canyon.
That said, you might find your favorite cove iced over. Even Crescent Bay is solid, which hasn’t happened in years.
I’ve talked to guys catching rainbow at what we like to call Geezer Beach, and one fellow told me his group caught two limits on the shore at Swawilla Basin last week.
You can find current lake level in this chart under “Midnight Elevation Level.”
And here’s our list of boat launch elevations.
MINIMUM BOAT LAUNCH ELEVATIONS
Crescent Bay 1265′
Spring Canyon 1222′
Keller Ferry 1229′
Hansen Harbor 1253′
Jones Bay 1266′
Lincoln Mill 1245′
Hawk Creek 1281′
Seven Bays 1227′
Fort Spokane 1247′
Porcupine Bay 1243′
Hunters Camp 1230′
Gifford 1249′
Daisy 1265′
Bradbury Beach 1251′
Kettle Falls 1234′
Marcus Island 1281′
Evans 1280′
North Gorge 1280′
Snag Cove 1277′
French Rocks 1265′
Napoleon Bridge 1280′
China Bend 1277′

Astounding Facts, Boating, swimming and fishing

Where to launch your boat on Lake Roosevelt during the government shutdown

There actually is a way to get your boat onto Lake Roosevelt, even with all the National Park Service ramps barricaded during the government shutdown.
Bear in mind, ranger staffing on the 131-mile long national recreation area is minimal, so if you go, you’re on your own.

Get your boat on Lake Roosevelt despite govt shutdown.

Boating, swimming and fishing

Lake Roosevelt hovers near full

The level of the lake is expected to remain in the 1287 – 1289 range for the next week (July 21 – 27), the Bureau of Reclamation says.This lake level forecast is only a prediction and can change due to weather events, power demand or other unforeseen power emergencies.Lake level forecasts are updated by 3 p.m. each day.  Please call 1-800-824-4916 for the updated forecast.

Level of Lake Roosevelt (feet above sea level)

To check on the lake’s current level, you can check here.

Astounding Facts, Boating, swimming and fishing, Places to See, To Dos

Catch the spectacular spill before it stops

As I write this, the Columbia River is flowing through Grand Coulee Dam at a rate of 195,400 cubic feet per second. And, spectacularly, about 25,000 cubic feet you can see spilling some 300 feet down the face of the dam.

At Niagara Falls you would see about 20,000 cubic feet of water falling about 70 feet.

The spill should keep going all week, adding incentive to anyone thinking about visiting the dam for the annual July 4th celebration.

A tour group leaves the big bus to peer over the edge of the dam as the Columbia roars over the top.
A tour group leaves the big bus to peer over the edge of the dam as the Columbia roars over the top.

If you’d like to check the current amount of water flowing in the river, over the dam or the level of Lake Roosevelt compared to sea level, you can do that here. (But the data fields might not line up well on a small screen of a cell phone.

Lake Roosevelt, behind the dam, is already basically full, well ahead of last year as the chart below shows.

 

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