Hyco Lake
Person County, North Carolina4,015 acresView mapDirections
NC DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Hyco Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- 54 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Hyco Lake in Person County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 12 µg/L. Surface area: 4015 acres.
Hyco Lake is a 4,015-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Person County, North Carolina with an estimated average depth of about 54 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Person County, Hyco Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NCDEQ, last sampled 2024-10-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Hyco Lake covers about 4,000 acres in Person County. It has one public boat landing. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Hyco Lake on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Hyco Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Big water4,015 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 Hyco Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Hyco Lake
These are the measurements NC DEQ publishes for Hyco Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 5.6 ft. Phosphorus 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 12 µg/L. TSI 54.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 30µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 12µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 54 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Hyco Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~54 ft est.
Surface area
4,015 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by NC DEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. North Carolina has not published bathymetry for Hyco Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
200 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
57.1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
413 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
- Person Caswell Recreation ParkPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Hyco Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Hyco Lake in Person County, North Carolina — 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 Hyco Lake
Prices for Oct 23–25, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fishing Hyco Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Hyco Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Hyco Dam (completed 1963), built primarily for recreation on the Hyco River; earth-type dam, 68 ft tall and 1,800 ft long.
- Surface area
- 4,015 ac
- Normal storage
- 78,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 169,501 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 190 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Duke Energy Corporation
All listed purposes: Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NC00656 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Person County
Frequently asked questions about Hyco Lake
Where is Hyco Lake?
- Hyco Lake is a lake in Person County, North Carolina. Its water-quality measurements are published by NC DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Hyco Lake?
- Hyco Lake in Person County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 12 µg/L. Surface area: 4015 acres.
Is Hyco Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Hyco Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Hyco Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 54 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 4015 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Hyco Lake?
- Hyco Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Person Caswell Recreation Park. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Hyco Lake?
- Hyco 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 North Carolina's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Hyco Lake across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
1.8 mi away · cable-pulled, no boat wake
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at North Carolina's top lakes, each with its readings
North Carolina's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
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Other Lakes in North Carolina
Eutrophic Lakes in North Carolina
Where this data comes from
80 measurements from 4 monitoring stations, 2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North Carolina Dept of Environmental Quality NCDEQ-DWR WQX
21NC03WQ80 samples · 2024
Analytical methods
- WSSSOP
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (4)
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