Mckay Creek Lake
Pinellas County, Florida85 acresView mapDirections
Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Mckay Creek Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- 51 ft max depth
- Public access
Mckay Creek Lake in Pinellas County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Surface area: 85 acres.
Mckay Creek Lake is a 85-acre mesotrophic lake in Pinellas County, Florida with an estimated average depth of about 51 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 33 other monitored lakes in Pinellas County, Mckay Creek Lake ranks #10 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2025-01-22. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Mckay Creek Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyBacteria tested: low
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.
Based on E. coli testing, Mckay Creek Lake never exceeded the EPA safe-swimming threshold (235 MPN/100mL) — on 0% of 42 samples across 8 seasons.
This is a historical summary of past testing, not a current condition — bacteria levels change quickly, especially after rain. Always check Florida’s current beach and health-department advisories before swimming.
Whether Mckay Creek Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Mckay Creek Lake
These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Mckay Creek Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
No clarity data. Phosphorus 20 µg/L. TSI 47.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | No reading How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. | |
| Total phosphorus | 20µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading 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. | 47 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Mckay Creek Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Mckay Creek Lake typically sits around 79°F at the surface in October. Summer average is about 88°F. Usually warmest in Jul (about 88°F) and coldest in Jan (about 61°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (61°F) to its warmest (88°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 88 field readings (2010–2025) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Mckay Creek Lake water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~51 ft est.
Surface area
85 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Florida DEP
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Florida has not published bathymetry for Mckay Creek Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
46 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
- Walsingham Park Fish Management AreaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Mckay Creek Lake
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Top-rated places to stay near Mckay Creek Lake
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Fishing Mckay Creek Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).
Phosphorus
Stable0 µg/L/yr5 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Mckay Creek Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Walsingham Reservoir, built primarily for recreation on the Mckay Creek; earth-type dam, 11 ft tall and 1,375 ft long.
- Surface area
- 85 ac
- Normal storage
- 170 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 2,760 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 2.2 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- PINELLAS COUNTY
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID FL78003 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.04 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Mckay Creek Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit FL1650 · Official waterbody report
Regulated Pollution Sources Nearby
2 EPA-permitted facilities operate within about 5 miles of Mckay Creek Lake under Clean Water Act (NPDES) discharge permits, including 2 classified by the EPA as major dischargers.
- Indian Rocks Beach, City OfIndian Rocks Beach · 2.6 mi away · NPDES FLS648248Major
- Belleair Beach, City OfBelleair Beach · 3.2 mi away · NPDES FLS648191Major
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 Pinellas County
Frequently asked questions about Mckay Creek Lake
Where is Mckay Creek Lake?
- Mckay Creek Lake is a lake in Pinellas County, Florida. Its water-quality measurements are published by Florida DEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Mckay Creek Lake?
- Mckay Creek Lake in Pinellas County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Surface area: 85 acres.
Is Mckay Creek Lake safe to swim in?
- Based on E. coli testing, Mckay Creek Lake never exceeded the EPA safe-swimming threshold (235 MPN/100mL) — on 0% of 42 samples across 8 seasons. That is a historical summary of past bacteria testing, not a current reading and not a swimming clearance. Bacteria levels can spike quickly after heavy rain, so whether Mckay Creek Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for Florida's water agency and the county health department; check their current beach advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Mckay Creek Lake?
- Mckay Creek Lake typically sits around 79°F at the surface in October, from 88 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2025). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Mckay Creek Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Mckay Creek Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 51 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 85 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Mckay Creek Lake?
- Mckay Creek Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Walsingham Park Fish Management Area. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Mckay Creek Lake?
- Mckay Creek 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 Florida's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
31 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Submitting organization not recorded for these samples31 samples · 2020–2025
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