Navarro Mills Lake
Navarro County, Texas5,070 acresView mapDirections
Nutrients and algae run well above the regional average.
↓ down from C at the last regrade
- Hypereutrophic
- #1 of 1 in the county
- 27 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Navarro Mills Lake in Navarro County, Texas has a water quality grade of F (Algae-prone). Water clarity: 2.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 50 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 38.6 µg/L. Surface area: 5070 acres.
- Clarity
- 2.2 ft
- Max depth
- ~27 ft est.
- Area
- 5,070 acres
- Type
- Hypereutrophic
- Phosphorus
- 50 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 38.6 µg/L
- Trend
- ↑ Improving
- Public access
- Yes
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Navarro Mills Lake is a 5,070-acre highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Navarro County, Texas with an estimated average depth of about 27 feet. Water quality is graded F based on 2 sampling years through 2026. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 6 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, TCEQ, last sampled 2026-01-07. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Navarro Mills Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch6 documented ramps
- Big water5,070 acres
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyLimited data
Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
The F is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: F (Algae-prone)
Very murky, less than 2.2 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 50 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 38.6 µg/L. TSI 64. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 2.2 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 50 µg/L | Poor |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 38.6 µg/L | Poor |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 64 | Hypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
Current Conditions
USGS snapshot Sep 7, 2026, 3:00 PM from gauge 08063050 (Navarro Mills Lk nr Dawson, TX). Station page ↗ — a live reading replaces this snapshot when the gauge responds. Missing live data is not an all-clear.
→ Navarro Mills Lake water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~27 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 5,070 acres |
| Public Access | Yes |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Texas has not published bathymetry for Navarro Mills Lake.
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
- Liberty Hill ParkPublic
- Liberty Hill ParkPublic
- Oak ParkPublic
- Wolf Creek ParkPublic
- Brushie Prairie ParkPublic
- Pecan Point ParkPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Navarro Mills Lake
Water Quality Trend: ↑ Improving
Based on 5 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↑ Improving | +0.088 m/yr | 5 |
| Phosphorus | ↑ Improving | -6.5 µg/L/yr | 5 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↑ Improving | -7.79 µg/L/yr | 4 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Navarro Mills Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Navarro Mills Dam (completed 1963), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Richland Creek; earth-type dam, 87 ft tall and 7,570 ft long.
- Surface area
- 5,070 ac
- Normal storage
- 63,300 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 323,879 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 320 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Fort Worth District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID TX00009 · Operator website
County Ranking
Ranked #1 of 1 lakes in Navarro County
Nearby Lakes in Navarro County
Frequently asked questions about Navarro Mills Lake
Where is Navarro Mills Lake?
- Navarro Mills Lake is a lake in Navarro County, Texas. LakeQuality grades it F for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Navarro Mills Lake?
- Navarro Mills Lake in Navarro County, Texas has a water quality grade of F (Algae-prone). Water clarity: 2.2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 50 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 38.6 µg/L. Surface area: 5070 acres.
Is Navarro Mills Lake safe to swim in?
- The F is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Navarro Mills Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Navarro Mills Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 27 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 5070 acres.
What is the water level at Navarro Mills Lake?
- The USGS snapshot on this page for Navarro Mills Lake is 422.55 ft of water-surface elevation, recorded Sep 7, 2026, 3:00 PM at gauge 08063050. Current Conditions hydrates a live NWIS reading from that same station when the gauge responds. A missed live fetch is not an all-clear.
Are there boat ramps on Navarro Mills Lake?
- Navarro Mills Lake has 6 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Liberty Hill Park, Liberty Hill Park, Oak Park, Wolf Creek Park, among others. Public access is listed as yes.
Explore Navarro Mills Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
61 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2020–2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
TCEQMAIN55 samples · 2020–2026 - USGS Texas Water Science Center
USGS-TX6 samples · 2020
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated 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