Wakesurfing on Billy Chinook Reservoir

Billy Chinook Reservoir rates Excellent for wakesurf suitability. Deep and roomy enough to ride the way the sport’s own guidance recommends. The rating is based on its measured surface area of 4,000 acres. This is a read of the water's dimensions, not legal permission — check the Oregon rules and the local authority for this lake before you launch.

No maximum-depth measurement is on record for Billy Chinook Reservoir in the state agency data we use, so its depth factor is unrated. We do not estimate depth.

Billy Chinook Reservoir carries a LakeQuality water-quality grade of B, computed from EPA and state monitoring data — Secchi clarity, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a. That is a separate question from wakesurf suitability: a lake can be excellent to ride and mediocre to swim in, or the reverse. See the full lake page for the grade breakdown.

Oregon has no statewide wake-surf distance/depth rule; statewide proposals have failed. Senate Bill 1589 (2022) created a statewide Towed Watersports Education requirement and, on the Willamette River's Newberg Pool (river miles 26.6-55), prohibits wake surfing and caps towed-watersports boats at under 5,500 pounds with special decals. Substantive wake-surf restrictions are waterbody-specific. Individual lakes often add stricter local limits on top of the statewide rule — no-wake zones, operating hours, and horsepower caps are all common — so confirm with the local authority for Billy Chinook Reservoir.