Barren River Lake
Barren County, Kentucky10,000 acresView mapDirections
No nutrient or algae sampling on record from Kentucky DOW for this lake.
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 82 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Barren River Lake in Barren County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Surface area: 10000 acres.
Barren River Lake is a 10,000-acre lake in Barren County, Kentucky with an estimated average depth of about 82 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 10 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KY DOW, last sampled 2016-04-26. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
At about 10,000 acres, Barren River Lake is large enough that where you stay decides which shore you see most of. It has 10 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Barren River Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Barren River Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch10 documented ramps
- Camping4 public campgrounds nearby
- Big water10,000 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barren River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Barren River Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kentucky Division of Water and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Barren River Lake
These are the measurements Kentucky DOW publishes for Barren River 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.
Ask about Barren River Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
→ Barren River Lake water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
Max depth
~82 ft est.
Surface area
10,000 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Kentucky DOW
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kentucky has not published bathymetry for Barren River Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
932 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
95.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
548 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.
Recreation & Access
- AustinPublic
- Baileys PointPublic
- Barren River SRP CampgroundPublic
- Beaver CreekPublic
- Browns FordPublic
- PeninsulaPublic
Showing 6 of 10 documented landings from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory.
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Barren River Lake
- Bailey Point Campground2.4 km
- Barren River Lake State Resort Park2.8 km
- Baileys Point2.8 kmReserve
- The Narrows Campground3.1 km
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Barren River Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Barren River Lake in Barren County, Kentucky — 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.
Top-rated places to stay near Barren River Lake
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fishing Barren River Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Barren River Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Barren River Dam (completed 1964), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Barren River; earth-type dam, 146 ft tall and 3,970 ft long.
- Surface area
- 10,000 ac
- Normal storage
- 190,320 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 815,150 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 940 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Louisville District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KY03009 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Barren River Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KY-171 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Barren County
Frequently asked questions about Barren River Lake
Where is Barren River Lake?
- Barren River Lake is a lake in Barren County, Kentucky. Its water-quality measurements are published by Kentucky DOW and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Barren River Lake?
- Barren River Lake in Barren County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Surface area: 10000 acres.
Is Barren River Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barren River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Barren River Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Barren River Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 82 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 10000 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Barren River Lake?
- Barren River Lake has 10 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Austin, Baileys Point, Barren River SRP Campground, Beaver Creek, among others. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Barren River Lake?
- Barren River Lake has 10 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Kentucky's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Are there campgrounds on Barren River Lake?
- Barren River Lake has 4 public campgrounds from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Bailey Point Campground, Barren River Lake State Resort Park, Baileys Point, The Narrows Campground. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore Barren River Lake across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Kentucky's top lakes, each with its readings
Kentucky's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
Planning a trip around Mammoth Cave?
Barren River Lake is about 22 miles from Mammoth Cave National Park. Crowds there swing hard by season, so the month you pick changes both how busy the park is and what lodging costs.
Best time to visit Mammoth Cave →More lakes in Kentucky
Other Lakes in Kentucky
Where this data comes from
10 measurements from 5 monitoring stations, 2016. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- KY WQX
21KY_WQX10 samples · 2016
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
Monitoring station identifiers (5)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles