Taylor Fork Lake
Madison County, Kentucky169 acresView mapDirections
Kentucky DOW publishes the water-quality measurements for Taylor Fork Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · Nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen)
- 38 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Taylor Fork Lake in Madison County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 66 µg/L. Surface area: 168.8 acres.
Taylor Fork Lake is a 169-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Madison County, Kentucky with an estimated average depth of about 38 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 2 other monitored lakes in Madison County, Taylor Fork Lake ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KY DOW, last sampled 2018-10-09. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
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. Taylor Fork Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Taylor Fork 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 Taylor Fork Lake
These are the measurements Kentucky DOW publishes for Taylor Fork 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 66 µg/L. TSI 65.
| 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 | 66µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| 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. | 65 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Taylor Fork Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~38 ft est.
Surface area
169 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 Taylor Fork Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
15 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
3.9 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
860 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.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Taylor Fork Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Taylor Fork Lake in Madison 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. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Taylor Fork Lake are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Taylor Fork Lake
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Fishing Taylor Fork Lake
Water quality readings over time
3 seasons of samples on record (2013–2018). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Phosphorus
Worsening+8.82 µg/L/yr3 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Taylor Fork Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Taylor Fork Lake Dam (completed 1966), built primarily for recreation on the Silver Creek; earth-type dam, 76 ft tall and 670 ft long.
- Surface area
- 168.8 ac
- Normal storage
- 3,571.9 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 8,319.8 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 14 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- MADISON COUNTY FISCAL COURT
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KY00048 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Taylor Fork Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Aquatic life.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KY-1880 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Madison County
Frequently asked questions about Taylor Fork Lake
Where is Taylor Fork Lake?
- Taylor Fork Lake is a lake in Madison County, Kentucky. Its water-quality measurements are published by Kentucky DOW and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Taylor Fork Lake?
- Taylor Fork Lake in Madison County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 66 µg/L. Surface area: 168.8 acres.
Is Taylor Fork Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Taylor Fork Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Taylor Fork Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Taylor Fork Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 38 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 168.8 acres.
Can I fish at Taylor Fork Lake?
- Public access to Taylor Fork 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.
Explore Taylor Fork Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
23 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2013–2018. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- KY WQX
21KY_WQX23 samples · 2013–2018
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)