Sympson Lake
Nelson County, Kentucky151 acresView mapDirections
Kentucky DOW publishes the water-quality measurements for Sympson Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- 33 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Sympson Lake in Nelson County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 21.9 µg/L. Surface area: 151 acres.
Sympson Lake is a 151-acre lake in Nelson County, Kentucky with an estimated average depth of about 33 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KY DOW, last sampled 2014-06-10. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Sympson Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Camping1 public campground nearby
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Sympson Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Kentucky Division of Water and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Sympson Lake
These are the measurements Kentucky DOW publishes for Sympson 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 21.9 µg/L. TSI 49.
| 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 | 21.9µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| 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. | 49 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Sympson Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~33 ft est.
Surface area
151 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Kentucky DOW
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Kentucky has not published bathymetry for Sympson Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
10 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
4.3 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
541 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
Public campgrounds near Sympson Lake
- My Old Kentucky Home State Park Campground4.7 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
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Sympson Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Sympson Lake in Nelson County, Kentucky — 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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Fishing Sympson Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Sympson Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Sympson Dam (completed 1963), built primarily for water supply on the Buffalo Creek; rockfill-type dam, 73 ft tall and 1,030 ft long.
- Surface area
- 151 ac
- Normal storage
- 4,030 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 5,590 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 9.1 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KY00045 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Nelson County
Frequently asked questions about Sympson Lake
Where is Sympson Lake?
- Sympson Lake is a lake in Nelson County, Kentucky. Its water-quality measurements are published by Kentucky DOW and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Sympson Lake?
- Sympson Lake in Nelson County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 21.9 µg/L. Surface area: 151 acres.
Is Sympson Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Sympson Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Sympson Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 33 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 151 acres.
Can I fish at Sympson Lake?
- Public access to Sympson Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Kentucky's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Are there campgrounds on Sympson Lake?
- Sympson Lake has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including My Old Kentucky Home State Park Campground. 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 Sympson Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
2 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2014. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- KY WQX
21KY_WQX2 samples · 2014
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
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)
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles