2023 Updates:
5/8/2023: Grass Lake Dam
5/19/2023: As of 11:30am today, the elevation at Grass Lake Dam was 991.84 (29 datum). The outlet at Pleasant Lake has been opened slightly and staff will be monitoring it to see what effect it may have on the lake levels. The steady decline in elevation is a good sign that we are past the worst of flooding from this spring but staff will continue to monitor and adjust as necessary. We will post updates here and on the CRWD Facebook page as needed.
5/16/2023: The elevation at Grass Lake Dam is at 992.07 (29 datum) as of 3:45pm today. This means the elevation is below the cut off. We will monitor it closely over the next couple of days to verify before taking any action on the outlet.
5/8/2023: Grass Lake Dam elevation was 992.69 (29 datum) at 11:45am today - 0.45 feet lower from last week. This slow and steady decline is nice to see. We will keep watching the levels and plan to have our telemetry meter reinstalled so that we can keep a constant eye on levels at the site.
5/3/2023: Grass Lake elevation was 993.14 (29 datum) at 11:45 AM today- down 0.16 feet from yesterday. Headed in the right direction!
We will take another manual reading this Friday before the forecasted rainfall Saturday- Wednesday (40-60% chance of rain each of those days). Then we will post again Thursday, after forecasted rainfall with some local rain gauge results and another gauge read. Our meter should be repaired and back in by then.
5/2/2023: Good morning everyone, Grass Lake Dam elevation this morning was 993.30 (29 datum), down from our high elevation of 993.74. Photo taken this morning below. Take care, boat safe, 11 days till fishing opener!
Additionally, Cedar Lake has enforced a 300' no wake rule due to high waters. There is a lot of debris in our lakes and rivers right now. Please be careful when out on the water and along the shores.
4/25/2023: Hi Everyone, Grass Lake Elevation went down 0.02 feet from 993.74 to 993.72 (29 datum) as of noon today. We would expect it to hold steady or keep coming down if we see dry conditions for a bit. Let's all hope the rain holds off a bit. As of today there is a middling chance of rain still in the forecast for Friday and Saturday. Staff was out today putting in the lake gauges and transducers we could get in.
4/23/2023: Good morning everyone, Grass Lake Dam manual reading from 10am today was 993.74 (ngvd 29 datum) which is 994.25 in the NAVD 88 datum. Also, while the gate outlet is still closed, Pleasant Lake has come up quite a bit and is now discharging over the surface spillway.
Cedar Lake is reporting record high levels as well and they still have ice on the lake. They are expecting a 300' no wake zone once folks are able to get on the water again.
5/16/2023: The elevation at Grass Lake Dam is at 992.07 (29 datum) as of 3:45pm today. This means the elevation is below the cut off. We will monitor it closely over the next couple of days to verify before taking any action on the outlet.
5/8/2023: Grass Lake Dam elevation was 992.69 (29 datum) at 11:45am today - 0.45 feet lower from last week. This slow and steady decline is nice to see. We will keep watching the levels and plan to have our telemetry meter reinstalled so that we can keep a constant eye on levels at the site.
5/3/2023: Grass Lake elevation was 993.14 (29 datum) at 11:45 AM today- down 0.16 feet from yesterday. Headed in the right direction!
We will take another manual reading this Friday before the forecasted rainfall Saturday- Wednesday (40-60% chance of rain each of those days). Then we will post again Thursday, after forecasted rainfall with some local rain gauge results and another gauge read. Our meter should be repaired and back in by then.
5/2/2023: Good morning everyone, Grass Lake Dam elevation this morning was 993.30 (29 datum), down from our high elevation of 993.74. Photo taken this morning below. Take care, boat safe, 11 days till fishing opener!
Additionally, Cedar Lake has enforced a 300' no wake rule due to high waters. There is a lot of debris in our lakes and rivers right now. Please be careful when out on the water and along the shores.
4/25/2023: Hi Everyone, Grass Lake Elevation went down 0.02 feet from 993.74 to 993.72 (29 datum) as of noon today. We would expect it to hold steady or keep coming down if we see dry conditions for a bit. Let's all hope the rain holds off a bit. As of today there is a middling chance of rain still in the forecast for Friday and Saturday. Staff was out today putting in the lake gauges and transducers we could get in.
4/23/2023: Good morning everyone, Grass Lake Dam manual reading from 10am today was 993.74 (ngvd 29 datum) which is 994.25 in the NAVD 88 datum. Also, while the gate outlet is still closed, Pleasant Lake has come up quite a bit and is now discharging over the surface spillway.
Cedar Lake is reporting record high levels as well and they still have ice on the lake. They are expecting a 300' no wake zone once folks are able to get on the water again.
4/20/2023: Grass Lake Dam elevation was 993.34 (29 datum) before last night's rain. Checking in with neighbors from the Kimball area, the upstream part of the 100,232 acres of land that drains into Clearwater Lake, show 0.75 inches of rain overnight. 0.8 inches by Lake Marie, and 1.2 inches southeast of Annandale.
NOAA's 5 day prediction was between 1 and 1.5 inches across the District Monday through Friday. Some rainfall generally soaks into the ground, or fills up lakes and wetlands upstream before it makes it to Clearwater Lake, but if you've driven around, you know how high the water is everywhere. So, we expect more of this rainfall to make it Clearwater Lake.
If 1/4 inch of the rainfall runs off we might expect Clearwater Lake to rise by 0.7 feet.
If 1/2 inch runs off we would expect Clearwater Lake to rise by 1.3 feet.
Not great news. Check your sump pumps. Don't hesitate to reach out to staff. We've been keeping Stearns and Wright Counties up to date on lake levels.
4/16/2023: Due to the elevation at Grass Lake Dam reaching its permitted cutoff elevation, the outlet at Pleasant Lake has been closed. Once the levels fall below 992.13', the outlet will be reopened. Continue to check here for updated elevations or email us at admin@crwd.org with any questions or concerns.
NOAA's 5 day prediction was between 1 and 1.5 inches across the District Monday through Friday. Some rainfall generally soaks into the ground, or fills up lakes and wetlands upstream before it makes it to Clearwater Lake, but if you've driven around, you know how high the water is everywhere. So, we expect more of this rainfall to make it Clearwater Lake.
If 1/4 inch of the rainfall runs off we might expect Clearwater Lake to rise by 0.7 feet.
If 1/2 inch runs off we would expect Clearwater Lake to rise by 1.3 feet.
Not great news. Check your sump pumps. Don't hesitate to reach out to staff. We've been keeping Stearns and Wright Counties up to date on lake levels.
4/16/2023: Due to the elevation at Grass Lake Dam reaching its permitted cutoff elevation, the outlet at Pleasant Lake has been closed. Once the levels fall below 992.13', the outlet will be reopened. Continue to check here for updated elevations or email us at admin@crwd.org with any questions or concerns.
The CRWD watches the lake level near the dam on Grass Lake because a DNR permit requires the watershed to close the outlet at Pleasant Lake when the elevation at Clearwater Lake reaches 992.13'. This is called the "cutoff" elevation. We can have a good estimate at what the Clearwater Lake elevation is based on the info at Grass Lake since they are connected by a channel. The water level at the Grass Lake Dam site is monitored continuously from approximately May to October each year. We use a device called a pressure transducer which is hooked up to an antenna and this sends us the data once per hour. We also have a staff gauge (a fancy term for a ruler) attached to the dam where we can verify that the information we are getting from the transducer is accurate.
The Ordinary High Water level (OHW) on Clearwater Lake is 991.3' and on Grass Lake is 990.9'. The OHW is defined as a location around the lake where there is a change in soil and vegetation that shows us where the water usually meets the land. The highest recorded water level on Clearwater Lake was 996' and Grass, it was 995.23'. These both occurred on 6/27/1983.
2022: The rains of mid-May in 2022 caused water levels to rise rapidly. After a peak of 993.00' on 5/18/2022, water levels started to recede and have continued to do so at a slow but steady pace. In June and early July, floating bogs caused issues at Grass Lake Dam and in Clearwater Lake. The bogs were pulled out from around the dam. Low precipitation has kept lake levels right around the OHW since mid-July 2022.
**All elevation information is being reported in NGVD29 datum. If you use NAVD88 datum, you would add approximately 0.5' to the elevation numbers listed here.
The Ordinary High Water level (OHW) on Clearwater Lake is 991.3' and on Grass Lake is 990.9'. The OHW is defined as a location around the lake where there is a change in soil and vegetation that shows us where the water usually meets the land. The highest recorded water level on Clearwater Lake was 996' and Grass, it was 995.23'. These both occurred on 6/27/1983.
2022: The rains of mid-May in 2022 caused water levels to rise rapidly. After a peak of 993.00' on 5/18/2022, water levels started to recede and have continued to do so at a slow but steady pace. In June and early July, floating bogs caused issues at Grass Lake Dam and in Clearwater Lake. The bogs were pulled out from around the dam. Low precipitation has kept lake levels right around the OHW since mid-July 2022.
**All elevation information is being reported in NGVD29 datum. If you use NAVD88 datum, you would add approximately 0.5' to the elevation numbers listed here.
Latest readings
Date Elevation
4/14/2023 992.14'
4/15/2023 992.65'
4/16/2023 992.42'
4/20/2023 993.34'
4/23/2023 993.74'
4/25/2023 993.72'
5/2/2023 993.30'
5/3/2023 993.14'
5/8/2023 992.69'
5/16/2023 992.07'
5/19/2023 991.84'
*Please note these elevations are in NGVD29 datum. If you use NAVD88, add approximately 0.5' to these numbers.
Date Elevation
4/14/2023 992.14'
4/15/2023 992.65'
4/16/2023 992.42'
4/20/2023 993.34'
4/23/2023 993.74'
4/25/2023 993.72'
5/2/2023 993.30'
5/3/2023 993.14'
5/8/2023 992.69'
5/16/2023 992.07'
5/19/2023 991.84'
*Please note these elevations are in NGVD29 datum. If you use NAVD88, add approximately 0.5' to these numbers.