Littlewood Lake
Blaine County, Idaho590 acresView mapDirections
Idaho DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Littlewood Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Hydrologic alteration
- 40 ft max depth
- Public access
Littlewood Lake in Blaine County, Idaho has water-quality measurements published by Idaho DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 28 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 13.9 µg/L. Surface area: 590 acres.
Littlewood Lake is a 590-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Blaine County, Idaho with an estimated average depth of about 40 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Blaine County, Littlewood Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, IDEQ, last sampled 2024-07-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Littlewood Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water12.5 ft of visibility
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyElevated nutrients
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. Littlewood Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4C) for hydrologic alteration. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Littlewood Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Littlewood Lake
These are the measurements Idaho DEQ publishes for Littlewood Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 12.5 ft. Phosphorus 28 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 13.9 µg/L. TSI 50.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 12.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 28µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 13.9µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 50 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Littlewood Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~40 ft est.
Surface area
590 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Idaho DEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Idaho has not published bathymetry for Littlewood Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
275 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
6.2 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
5,223 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.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Littlewood Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Littlewood Lake in Blaine County, Idaho — 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 Littlewood Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Littlewood Lake
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fishing Littlewood Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 13 years of monitoring (2012–2024).
Water clarity
Worsening11 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+1.98 µg/L/yr13 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+7.79 µg/L/yr11 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Littlewood Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Little Wood River Dam (completed 1939), built primarily for irrigation on the Little Wood River Malad River; earth-type dam, 129 ft tall and 3,100 ft long.
- Surface area
- 590 ac
- Normal storage
- 30,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 33,300 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 273.98 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- LITTLE WOOD RIVER IRRIGATION DISTRICT
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID ID00041 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.29 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Littlewood Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4C).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit ID17040221SK012L_0L · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Blaine County
Frequently asked questions about Littlewood Lake
Where is Littlewood Lake?
- Littlewood Lake is a lake in Blaine County, Idaho. Its water-quality measurements are published by Idaho DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Littlewood Lake?
- Littlewood Lake in Blaine County, Idaho has water-quality measurements published by Idaho DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 12.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 28 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 13.9 µg/L. Surface area: 590 acres.
Is Littlewood Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Littlewood Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4C) for hydrologic alteration. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Littlewood Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Littlewood Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 40 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 590 acres.
Can I fish at Littlewood Lake?
- Public access to Littlewood Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Idaho's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Littlewood Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
56 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2012–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Bureau of Reclamation
1119USBR_WQX56 samples · 2012–2024
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- Zebra/Quagga Mussel APHA 10200G Modified
- Phosphorus by Single Reagent Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- Turbidity by Nephelometry
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)