Back Creek Lake
Randolph County, North Carolina236 acresView mapDirections
NC DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Back Creek Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- 37 ft max depth
Back Creek Lake in Randolph County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 40 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 27 µg/L. Surface area: 236 acres.
Back Creek Lake is a 236-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Randolph County, North Carolina with an estimated average depth of about 37 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 4 other monitored lakes in Randolph County, Back Creek Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NCDEQ, last sampled 2022-09-15. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Back Creek Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Back Creek Lake
These are the measurements NC DEQ publishes for Back Creek Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
No clarity data. Phosphorus 40 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 27 µg/L. TSI 60.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | No reading How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. | |
| Total phosphorus | 40µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 27µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 60 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Back Creek Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~37 ft est.
Surface area
236 acres
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. North Carolina has not published bathymetry for Back Creek Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
17 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
4.5 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
541 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Back Creek Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Back Creek Lake in Randolph County, North Carolina — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Back Creek Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Back Creek Lake
Prices for Oct 23–25, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at North Carolina’s top lakes →
Follow Back Creek Lake’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Back Creek Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2021–2022). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Phosphorus
Improving-10 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-6 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Back Creek Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lucas Lake Dam (completed 1947), built primarily for other on the Back Creek; concrete-type dam, 64 ft tall and 375 ft long.
- Surface area
- 236 ac
- Normal storage
- 5,700 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 6,840 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 15.7 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- City of Asheboro
All listed purposes: Other;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NC00453 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.93 km)
Nearby Lakes in Randolph County
Frequently asked questions about Back Creek Lake
Where is Back Creek Lake?
- Back Creek Lake is a lake in Randolph County, North Carolina. Its water-quality measurements are published by NC DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Back Creek Lake?
- Back Creek Lake in Randolph County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 40 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 27 µg/L. Surface area: 236 acres.
Is Back Creek Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Back Creek Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Back Creek Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 37 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 236 acres.
Explore Back Creek Lake across LakeQuality
More lakes in North Carolina
Other Lakes in North Carolina
Eutrophic Lakes in North Carolina
Where this data comes from
93 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2021–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North Carolina Dept of Environmental Quality NCDEQ-DWR WQX
21NC03WQ93 samples · 2021–2022
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (3)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)