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LakeQuality

Parker Canyon Lake

Cochise County, Arizona133 acresView mapDirections

NR
Not rated

Not enough samples to grade — no nutrient or algae measurement meets the evidence bar (at least 3 samples within 10 years). No letter yet. Here is what we do have.

Water temp
No reading
No gauge
Clarity
No reading
No sample
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
No reading
Not enough history
  • Impaired · Mercury
  • Public access
  • Limited data

Parker Canyon Lake in Cochise County, Arizona is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Surface area: 133 acres.

Area
133 acres
Public access
Yes
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Stays near Parker Canyon Lake

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Parker Canyon Lake in Cochise County, Arizona — 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.

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Watch Parker Canyon Lake’s letter

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Why Parker Canyon Lake has no grade

We grade a lake only when the monitoring record supports a letter: at least three phosphorus or chlorophyll-a samples in the last ten years, scored against EPA National Lakes Assessment thresholds for this lake’s ecoregion. For Parker Canyon Lake, no nutrient or algae measurement meets the evidence bar (at least 3 samples within 10 years).

Not Rated is not an F. It is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 — insufficient information. The water here may be excellent or poor; nobody has measured enough of it to say. Everything below that has been measured is still reported on this page.

Sampling is run by ADEQ and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.

Parker Canyon Lake is a 133-acre lake in Cochise County, Arizona. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, ADEQ, last sampled 2026-04-04. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

What Parker Canyon Lake is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Boat launch1 documented ramp
  • Camping1 public campground nearby

Swimming Safety

Not rated

Limited data

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Parker Canyon Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.

Get alerts for Parker Canyon Lake

Water quality measurements for Parker Canyon Lake

These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.

No clarity data.

MetricValueGrade
Water Clarity (Secchi Depth)No recent samples
PhosphorusNo recent samples
Chlorophyll-a (Algae)No recent samples

Lake Details

CharacteristicValue
Surface Area133 acres
Public AccessYes

No bathymetric survey has been published for Parker Canyon Lake, so its depth is not documented here.

Recreation & Access

1
Boat Landings
Yes
Public Access
1
Campgrounds
  • Parker Canyon LakePublic

Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps

Public campgrounds near Parker Canyon Lake

  • Rock Bluff0.8 km

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

Fishing Parker Canyon Lake

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Parker Canyon Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Parker Canyon (completed 1962), built primarily for recreation on the Parker Canyon Creek; earth-type dam, 80 ft tall and 600 ft long.

Surface area
133 ac
Normal storage
3,710 ac-ft
Max storage
4,400 ac-ft
Drainage area
9 sq mi
Hazard class
High
Owner
ARIZONA GAME & FISH DEPARTMENT

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID AZ00014 · Operator website

EPA Impairment Status

Parker Canyon Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).

Causes of impairment

Mercury

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit AZL15050301-1040_00 · Official waterbody report

Graded lakes near Parker Canyon Lake

Parker Canyon Lake has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.

Nearby Lakes in Cochise County

Frequently asked questions about Parker Canyon Lake

Where is Parker Canyon Lake?

Parker Canyon Lake is a lake in Cochise County, Arizona. LakeQuality has not rated this lake (UNRATED) — no nutrient or algae measurement meets the evidence bar (at least 3 samples within 10 years).

What is the water quality grade for Parker Canyon Lake?

Parker Canyon Lake in Cochise County, Arizona is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Surface area: 133 acres.

Is Parker Canyon Lake safe to swim in?

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Parker Canyon Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.

Are there boat ramps on Parker Canyon Lake?

Parker Canyon Lake has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Parker Canyon Lake. Public access is listed as yes.

Are there campgrounds on Parker Canyon Lake?

Parker Canyon Lake has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Rock Bluff. 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.

Where this data comes from

3 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • Great Lakes Environmental CenterGLEC3 samples · 2026

Analytical methods

  • 4500 P E ~ Phosphorus in Water by Colorimetry- Ascorbic Acid Method
  • 300.0 ~ EPA; Determination of Inorganic Anions by Ion Chromatography
Monitoring station identifiers (1)

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

Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database

Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory

Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles