Lake Pawhuska
Osage County, Oklahoma103 acresView mapDirections
Oklahoma DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Lake Pawhuska. Here is what has been measured.
- 37 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
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Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Pawhuska in Osage County, Oklahoma has water-quality measurements published by Oklahoma DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.5 ft visibility. Surface area: 103 acres.
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Lake Pawhuska is a 103-acre lake in Osage County, Oklahoma with an estimated average depth of about 37 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, ODEQ, last sampled 2023-09-26. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Lake Pawhuska is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Lake Pawhuska 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 Lake Pawhuska
These are the measurements Oklahoma DEQ publishes for Lake Pawhuska, 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 3.5 ft. TSI 59.
| Metric | Value | EPA condition class |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 3.5 ft | Measured, not scored |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 59 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~37 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~15 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 103 acres |
| Public Access | Yes |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Oklahoma has not published bathymetry for Lake Pawhuska.
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 PawhuskaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Lake Pawhuska
Water Quality Trend: ↑ Improving
Based on 2 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↑ Improving | +5.667 m/yr | 2 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lake Pawhuska is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Pawhuska Lake Dam (completed 1936), built primarily for water supply on the Tributary Clear Creek; earth-type dam, 53 ft tall and 960 ft long.
- Surface area
- 103 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,819 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 2,268 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 2.8 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- City of Pawhuska
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID OK11044 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Osage County
Frequently asked questions about Lake Pawhuska
Where is Lake Pawhuska?
- Lake Pawhuska is a lake in Osage County, Oklahoma. Its water-quality measurements are published by Oklahoma DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Lake Pawhuska?
- Lake Pawhuska in Osage County, Oklahoma has water-quality measurements published by Oklahoma DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.5 ft visibility. Surface area: 103 acres.
Is Lake Pawhuska safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lake Pawhuska?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lake Pawhuska, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 37 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 103 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Lake Pawhuska?
- Lake Pawhuska has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Lake Pawhuska. Public access is listed as yes.
Explore Lake Pawhuska across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
26 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_WQX26 samples · 2016–2023
Analytical methods
- OWRB Lakes Field Data Collection
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- 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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory