Fall River Lake
Greenwood County, Kansas2,329 acresView mapDirections
KDHE publishes the water-quality measurements for Fall River Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 38 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Fall River Lake in Greenwood County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 49 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 25.5 µg/L. Surface area: 2329 acres.
Fall River Lake is a 2,329-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Greenwood County, Kansas with an estimated average depth of about 38 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 4 public boat landings. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Greenwood County, Fall River Lake ranks #3 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KDHE, last sampled 2016-08-02. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Fall River Lake covers about 2,300 acres in Greenwood County. It has 4 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 Fall River Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Fall River Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch4 documented ramps
- Camping2 public campgrounds nearby
- Big water2,329 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation use not supported
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. Fall River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Fall River Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Fall River Lake
These are the measurements KDHE publishes for Fall River Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 1.9 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 49 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 25.5 µg/L. TSI 63.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 1.9ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 49µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 25.5µg/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. | 63 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Fall River Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~38 ft est.
Surface area
2,329 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by KDHE
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kansas has not published bathymetry for Fall River Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
565 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
15.5 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
958 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
- Fall RiverPublic
- Fall RiverPublic
- Fall River-Engineers CovePublic
- Fall RiverPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Fall River Lake
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 Fall River Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Fall River Lake in Greenwood County, Kansas — 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 Fall River Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Fall River Lake
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 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 trip? Cabins and lodging at Fall River Lake → · more Kansas lake trips
Follow Fall River Lake’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Fall River Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2014–2016). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Improving-1.25 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+2.5 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Fall River Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Fall River Dam (completed 1948), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Fall River; gravity-type dam, 94 ft tall and 6,015 ft long.
- Surface area
- 2,329 ac
- Normal storage
- 22,627 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 256,400 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 585 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Tulsa District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Other;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KS00003 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Fall River Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KS-LM023001 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Greenwood County
Frequently asked questions about Fall River Lake
Where is Fall River Lake?
- Fall River Lake is a lake in Greenwood County, Kansas. Its water-quality measurements are published by KDHE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Fall River Lake?
- Fall River Lake in Greenwood County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.9 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 49 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 25.5 µg/L. Surface area: 2329 acres.
Is Fall River Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Fall River Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO), sediment / turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Fall River Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Fall River Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 38 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 2329 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Fall River Lake?
- Fall River Lake has 4 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Fall River, Fall River, Fall River-Engineers Cove, Fall River. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Fall River Lake?
- Fall River Lake has 4 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Kansas's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Are there campgrounds on Fall River Lake?
- Fall River Lake has 2 public campgrounds from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Damsite - Fall River Lake, Whitehall Bay. 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 Fall River Lake across LakeQuality
More lakes in Kansas
Other Lakes in Kansas
Eutrophic Lakes in Kansas
Where this data comes from
11 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2014–2016. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Kansas Department Of Health And Environment
21KAN001_WQX11 samples · 2014–2016
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
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