Lake Nockamixon
Bucks County, Pennsylvania1,450 acresView mapDirections
PA DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Lake Nockamixon. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 47 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Lake Nockamixon in Bucks County, Pennsylvania has water-quality measurements published by PA DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 29 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 13.1 µg/L. Surface area: 1450 acres.
Lake Nockamixon is a 1,450-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Bucks County, Pennsylvania with an estimated average depth of about 47 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 4 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, PA DEP, last sampled 2023-07-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Lake Nockamixon covers about 1,500 acres in Bucks County. It has 4 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Lake Nockamixon on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Lake Nockamixon is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch4 documented ramps
- Big water1,450 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. Lake Nockamixon is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Lake Nockamixon is safe to swim in today is a call for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Lake Nockamixon
These are the measurements PA DEP publishes for Lake Nockamixon, 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 4.8 ft. Phosphorus 29 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 13.1 µg/L. TSI 55.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 4.8ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 29µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 13.1µg/L | Measured, not scored 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. | 55 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Lake Nockamixon
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~47 ft est.
Surface area
1,450 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by PA DEP
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Pennsylvania has not published bathymetry for Lake Nockamixon.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
69 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
20.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
394 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
- HaycockPublic
- TohickonPublic
- Main MarinaPublic
- Three Mile RunPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Lake Nockamixon
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Lake Nockamixon in Bucks County, Pennsylvania — 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 Lake Nockamixon
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Fishing Lake Nockamixon
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lake Nockamixon is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Nockamixon (completed 1973), built primarily for recreation on the TOHICKON CREEK; rockfill-type dam, 112 ft tall and 1,511 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,450 ac
- Normal storage
- 40,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 71,000 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 73.3 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- DCNR
All listed purposes: Recreation;Flood Risk Reduction.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID PA00734 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Lake Nockamixon 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: Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit PA-LRP-02040105003977 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
29 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Lake Nockamixon under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits. 13 facilities have a reported Clean Water Act violation in the past three years.
- Nockamixon State Park StpPerkasie · 1.8 mi away · NPDES PA0042641Recent violation
- Tohickon Family Campground WwtpQuakertown · 2.7 mi away · NPDES PA0051586Recent violation
- Harrow Station StpOttsville · 3.1 mi away · NPDES PA0058017Recent violation
- Success Rehabilitation Clinic WwtpQuakertown · 3.5 mi away · NPDES PA0054704Recent violation
- Bradshaw ReservoirPlumstead · 3.6 mi away · NPDES PA0052221Recent violation
- Heidelberg Materials Ne Ottsville QuarryOttsville · 3.7 mi away · NPDES PA0611999Recent violation
Facilities permitted to discharge under the Clean Water Act within ~5 miles; proximity does not by itself mean a facility affects this lake. Source: EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES), as of 2026-07.
Nearby Lakes in Bucks County
Frequently asked questions about Lake Nockamixon
Where is Lake Nockamixon?
- Lake Nockamixon is a lake in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Its water-quality measurements are published by PA DEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Lake Nockamixon?
- Lake Nockamixon in Bucks County, Pennsylvania has water-quality measurements published by PA DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 29 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 13.1 µg/L. Surface area: 1450 acres.
Is Lake Nockamixon safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Lake Nockamixon is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), turbidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lake Nockamixon?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lake Nockamixon, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 47 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 1450 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Lake Nockamixon?
- Lake Nockamixon has 4 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Haycock, Tohickon, Main Marina, Three Mile Run. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Lake Nockamixon?
- Lake Nockamixon 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 Pennsylvania's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Lake Nockamixon across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Pennsylvania's top lakes, each with its readings
Pennsylvania's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
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Where this data comes from
2 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS2 samples · 2023
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
Regulated discharger data from EPA ECHO (ICIS-NPDES)
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory