Melvern Lake
Osage County, Kansas6,930 acresView mapDirections
KDHE publishes the water-quality measurements for Melvern Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- 88 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Melvern Lake in Osage County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6 µg/L. Surface area: 6930 acres.
Melvern Lake is a 6,930-acre mesotrophic lake in Osage County, Kansas with an estimated average depth of about 88 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 6 public boat landings. Compared to the 4 other monitored lakes in Osage County, Melvern Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KDHE, last sampled 2017-08-02. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
At about 6,900 acres, Melvern Lake is large enough that where you stay decides which shore you see most of. It has 6 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Melvern Lake on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Melvern Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch6 documented ramps
- Camping2 public campgrounds nearby
- Big water6,930 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 Melvern Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Melvern Lake
These are the measurements KDHE publishes for Melvern 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 4.8 ft. Phosphorus 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 6 µg/L. TSI 50.
| 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 | 20µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 6µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 50 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Melvern Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
→ Melvern Lake water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
Max depth
~88 ft est.
Surface area
6,930 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by KDHE
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kansas has not published bathymetry for Melvern Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
337 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
49.2 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
1,030 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
- Melvern-WestPublic
- Melvern-EastPublic
- Turkey PointPublic
- Arrow RockPublic
- Melvern Lake Outlet ParkPublic
- Melvern Lake MarinaSemi-private
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Melvern Lake
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Melvern Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Melvern Lake in Osage County, Kansas — 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 Melvern Lake
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a trip? Cabins and lodging at Melvern Lake → · more Kansas lake trips
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Fishing Melvern Lake
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2014–2017). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Stable+0.33 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+0.17 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Melvern Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Melvern Dam (completed 1972), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Marais Des Cygnes; earth-type dam, 123 ft tall and 9,750 ft long.
- Surface area
- 6,930 ac
- Normal storage
- 154,000 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 363,000 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 349 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Kansas City District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KS00007 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Osage County
Frequently asked questions about Melvern Lake
Where is Melvern Lake?
- Melvern Lake is a lake in Osage County, Kansas. Its water-quality measurements are published by KDHE and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Melvern Lake?
- Melvern Lake in Osage County, Kansas has water-quality measurements published by KDHE, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6 µg/L. Surface area: 6930 acres.
Is Melvern Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Melvern Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Melvern Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 88 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 6930 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Melvern Lake?
- Melvern Lake has 6 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Melvern-West, Melvern-East, Turkey Point, Arrow Rock, among others. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Melvern Lake?
- Melvern Lake has 6 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Kansas's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Are there campgrounds on Melvern Lake?
- Melvern Lake has 2 public campgrounds from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Outlet(melvern), Coeur D'Alene. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore Melvern Lake across LakeQuality
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Other Lakes in Kansas
Mesotrophic Lakes in Kansas
Where this data comes from
11 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2014–2017. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Kansas Department Of Health And Environment
21KAN001_WQX11 samples · 2014–2017
Analytical methods
- Depth, Secchi disk depth
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles