Hawk Springs Reservoir
Goshen County, Wyoming1,328 acresView mapDirections
Wyoming DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Hawk Springs Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- 71 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Hawk Springs Reservoir in Goshen County, Wyoming has water-quality measurements published by Wyoming DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 50 µg/L. Surface area: 1328 acres.
Hawk Springs Reservoir is a 1,328-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Goshen County, Wyoming with an estimated average depth of about 71 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Goshen County, Hawk Springs Reservoir ranks #1 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Wyoming DEQ, last sampled 2018-09-04. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Hawk Springs Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Big water1,328 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. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Hawk Springs Reservoir is safe to swim in today is a call for the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Hawk Springs Reservoir
These are the measurements Wyoming DEQ publishes for Hawk Springs Reservoir, 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 1.1 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 50 µg/L. TSI 68.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 1.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 50µg/L | Poor 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. | 68 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Hawk Springs Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~71 ft est.
Surface area
1,328 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Wyoming DEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Wyoming has not published bathymetry for Hawk Springs Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
25 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
6.7 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
4,488 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
- Hawk Springs ReservoirPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Hawk Springs Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Hawk Springs Reservoir in Goshen County, Wyoming — 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 Hawk Springs Reservoir are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Hawk Springs Reservoir
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Fishing Hawk Springs Reservoir
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2015–2018). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Stable2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+10.07 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Hawk Springs Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Hawk Springs (completed 1925), built primarily for irrigation on the Horse Creek; earth-type dam, 64 ft tall and 2,400 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,328 ac
- Normal storage
- 16,735 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 24,500 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 21.1 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- HORSE CREEK CONSERVATION DISTRICT
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID WY00003 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Goshen County
Frequently asked questions about Hawk Springs Reservoir
Where is Hawk Springs Reservoir?
- Hawk Springs Reservoir is a lake in Goshen County, Wyoming. Its water-quality measurements are published by Wyoming DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Hawk Springs Reservoir?
- Hawk Springs Reservoir in Goshen County, Wyoming has water-quality measurements published by Wyoming DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 1.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 50 µg/L. Surface area: 1328 acres.
Is Hawk Springs Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Hawk Springs Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Hawk Springs Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 71 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 1328 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Hawk Springs Reservoir?
- Hawk Springs Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Hawk Springs Reservoir. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Hawk Springs Reservoir?
- Hawk Springs Reservoir 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 Wyoming's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
22 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2015–2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- State of Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality Watershed Program
WYDEQ_WATERSHED22 samples · 2015–2018
Analytical methods
- Secchi
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
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)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory