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LakeQuality

Somerset Reservoir

Windham County, Vermont1,514 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
Max depth
~141 ft est.
GLOBathy model
Level
No reading
No gauge
Trend
No reading
Not enough history
  • Impaired · Mercury
  • 141 ft max depth
  • Limited data

Somerset Reservoir in Windham County, Vermont is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Surface area: 1514 acres.

Max depth
~141 ft est.
Area
1,514 acres
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Stays near Somerset Reservoir

Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Somerset Reservoir in Windham County, Vermont — 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 Somerset Reservoir’s letter

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Why Somerset Reservoir 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 Somerset Reservoir, 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 VT DEC and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.

Somerset Reservoir is a 1,514-acre lake in Windham County, Vermont with an estimated average depth of about 141 feet.

Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, VT DEC, last sampled 2024-05-01. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.

What Somerset Reservoir is good for

From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.

  • Camping1 public campground nearby
  • Big water1,514 acres

Swimming Safety

Not rated

Limited data

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Somerset Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury, pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.

Compare the safest swimming lakes near Albany

Get alerts for Somerset Reservoir

Water quality measurements for Somerset Reservoir

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
Maximum Depth~141 ft est.
Surface Area1,514 acres

Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Vermont has not published bathymetry for Somerset Reservoir.

Lake Size & Watershed

Watershed (drainage) area
26 sq mi
Shoreline
12 mi
Elevation
2,113 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

1
Campgrounds

Public campgrounds near Somerset Reservoir

  • Somerset Airfield4.3 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 Somerset Reservoir

Reservoir Info (USACE NID)

Somerset Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Somerset (completed 1913), built primarily for hydroelectric on the East Branch Deerfield River; other-type dam, 110 ft tall and 2,101 ft long.

Surface area
1,514 ac
Normal storage
35,517 ac-ft
Max storage
57,345 ac-ft
Drainage area
30 sq mi
Hazard class
High
Owner
Great River Hydro, LLC

All listed purposes: Hydroelectric;Recreation.

Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VT00018 · Operator website

EPA Impairment Status

Somerset Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 4A).

Causes of impairment

MercurypH / acidity

A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.

Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VT12-03L02 · Official waterbody report

Graded lakes near Somerset Reservoir

Somerset Reservoir has no grade, but these lakes within a short drive do.

Nearby Lakes in Windham County

Frequently asked questions about Somerset Reservoir

Where is Somerset Reservoir?

Somerset Reservoir is a lake in Windham County, Vermont. 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 Somerset Reservoir?

Somerset Reservoir in Windham County, Vermont is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Surface area: 1514 acres.

Is Somerset Reservoir safe to swim in?

The letter is not a swimming clearance. Somerset Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 4A) for mercury, pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.

How deep is Somerset Reservoir?

No published bathymetric survey covers Somerset Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 141 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 1514 acres.

Are there campgrounds on Somerset Reservoir?

Somerset Reservoir has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Somerset Airfield. 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

5 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.

Collected and reported by

  • Vermont Dept of Environmental Conservation1VTDECWQ5 samples · 2024

Analytical methods

  • EPA approved Alternate Test Procedure for 4500 P H. Has a 28 day hold without acid preservation.
  • 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
  • 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
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

Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)

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