Hefner Lake
Oklahoma County, Oklahoma3,110 acresView mapDirections
Oklahoma DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Hefner Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 71 ft max depth
- Limited data
Ask about Hefner Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Hefner Lake in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma has water-quality measurements published by Oklahoma DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 3110 acres.
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Hefner Lake is a 3,110-acre lake in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma with an estimated average depth of about 71 feet. Public access is available with 2 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, ODEQ, last sampled 2023-10-04. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Hefner Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch2 documented ramps
- Big water3,110 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Hefner Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Hefner Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Hefner Lake
These are the measurements Oklahoma DEQ publishes for Hefner 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 2.3 ft of visibility. TSI 65.
| Metric | Value | EPA condition class |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 2.3 ft | Measured, not scored |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 65 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Current Conditions
USGS snapshot Sep 7, 2026, 3:45 PM from gauge 07159550 (Lake Hefner at Oklahoma City, OK). Station page ↗ — a live reading replaces this snapshot when the gauge responds. Missing live data is not an all-clear.
→ Hefner Lake water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~71 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~47 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 3,110 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Oklahoma has not published bathymetry for Hefner Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
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
- Lake HefnerSemi-private
- Oklahoma City Boat ClubSemi-private
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Hefner Lake
Water Quality Trend: → Stable
Based on 4 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | → Stable | +0.362 m/yr | 4 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Hefner Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Hefner (completed 1943), built primarily for water supply on the Bluff Creek; earth-type dam, 112 ft tall and 26,400 ft long.
- Surface area
- 3,110 ac
- Normal storage
- 74,400 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 107,400 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 9.69 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID OK02535 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Hefner Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit OK620910040200_00 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Oklahoma County
Frequently asked questions about Hefner Lake
Where is Hefner Lake?
- Hefner Lake is a lake in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. Its water-quality measurements are published by Oklahoma DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Hefner Lake?
- Hefner Lake in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma has water-quality measurements published by Oklahoma DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.3 ft visibility. Surface area: 3110 acres.
Is Hefner Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Hefner Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Hefner Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Hefner Lake, 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 3110 acres.
What is the water level at Hefner Lake?
- The USGS snapshot on this page for Hefner Lake is 1190.99 ft of gage height, recorded Sep 7, 2026, 3:45 PM at gauge 07159550. Current Conditions hydrates a live NWIS reading from that same station when the gauge responds. A missed live fetch is not an all-clear.
Are there boat ramps on Hefner Lake?
- Hefner Lake has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Lake Hefner, Oklahoma City Boat Club.
Explore Hefner Lake across LakeQuality
9.6 mi away · cable-pulled, no boat wake
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Where this data comes from
38 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2016–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- OWRB Lakes Monitoring
OKWRB-LAKES_WQX38 samples · 2016–2023
Analytical methods
- OWRB Lakes Field Data Collection
- Determination of Turbidity
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