Fishtrap Lake
Pike County, Kentucky1,131 acresView mapDirections
Kentucky DOW publishes the water-quality measurements for Fishtrap Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
- Impaired · PCBs
- 64 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Fishtrap Lake in Pike County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Surface area: 1131 acres.
Fishtrap Lake is a 1,131-acre cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Pike County, Kentucky with an estimated average depth of about 64 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KY DOW, last sampled 2017-10-04. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Fishtrap Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Camping1 public campground nearby
- Big water1,131 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
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. Fishtrap Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Fishtrap 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 Fishtrap Lake
These are the measurements Kentucky DOW publishes for Fishtrap 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 10 µg/L. TSI 37.
| 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 | 10µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 37 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Fishtrap Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~64 ft est.
Surface area
1,131 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 Fishtrap Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
394 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
15.3 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
781 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
- GrapevinePublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Fishtrap Lake
- Fishtrap Lake Shelters2.1 kmReserve
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 Fishtrap Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Fishtrap Lake in Pike 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 Fishtrap Lake
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Fishing Fishtrap Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2012–2017). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Phosphorus
Improving-2 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Fishtrap Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Fishtrap Dam (completed 1969), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Levisa Fork of Big Sandy River; rockfill-type dam, 195 ft tall and 1,100 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,131 ac
- Normal storage
- 37,720 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 164,360 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 392 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Huntington District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Other;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KY03028 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Fishtrap 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: Fish consumption.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KY-755 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Pike County
Frequently asked questions about Fishtrap Lake
Where is Fishtrap Lake?
- Fishtrap Lake is a lake in Pike County, Kentucky. Its water-quality measurements are published by Kentucky DOW and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Fishtrap Lake?
- Fishtrap Lake in Pike County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Surface area: 1131 acres.
Is Fishtrap Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Fishtrap Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Fishtrap Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Fishtrap Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 64 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 1131 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Fishtrap Lake?
- Fishtrap Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Grapevine. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Fishtrap Lake?
- Fishtrap Lake has 1 documented boat landing 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 Fishtrap Lake?
- Fishtrap Lake has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Fishtrap Lake Shelters. 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 Fishtrap Lake across LakeQuality
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Oligotrophic Lakes in Kentucky
Where this data comes from
20 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2012–2017. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- KY WQX
21KY_WQX20 samples · 2012–2017
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
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
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