Taylorsville Lake
Spencer County, Kentucky3,050 acresView mapDirections
Kentucky DOW publishes the water-quality measurements for Taylorsville Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Mercury
- 63 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Taylorsville Lake in Spencer County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 15.3 µg/L. Surface area: 3050 acres.
Taylorsville Lake is a 3,050-acre lake in Spencer County, Kentucky with an estimated average depth of about 63 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 5 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, KY DOW, last sampled 2014-10-23. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Taylorsville Lake covers about 3,100 acres in Spencer County. It has 5 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around Taylorsville Lake, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.
What Taylorsville Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch5 documented ramps
- Camping1 public campground nearby
- Big water3,050 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Taylorsville Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Taylorsville 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 Taylorsville Lake
These are the measurements Kentucky DOW publishes for Taylorsville 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 15.3 µg/L. TSI 43.
| 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 | 15.3µg/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. | 43 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Taylorsville Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
→ Taylorsville Lake water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
Max depth
~63 ft est.
Surface area
3,050 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 Taylorsville Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
355 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
45.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
564 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
- Chowning LanePublic
- Possum RidgePublic
- Settlers TracePublic
- Taylorsville Lake TailwaterPublic
- Van BurenPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Taylorsville Lake
- Taylorsville Lake State Park Campground4.5 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 Taylorsville Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Taylorsville Lake in Spencer 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.
Top-rated places to stay near Taylorsville Lake
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a trip? Cabins and lodging at Taylorsville Lake → · more Kentucky lake trips
Follow Taylorsville Lake’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Taylorsville Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Taylorsville Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Taylorsville Dam (completed 1983), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Salt River; rockfill-type dam, 162 ft tall and 1,280 ft long.
- Surface area
- 3,050 ac
- Normal storage
- 86,440 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 291,670 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 353 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- USACE - Louisville District
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Other;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID KY03051 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Taylorsville 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, Fish consumption.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit KY-51 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Spencer County
Frequently asked questions about Taylorsville Lake
Where is Taylorsville Lake?
- Taylorsville Lake is a lake in Spencer County, Kentucky. Its water-quality measurements are published by Kentucky DOW and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Taylorsville Lake?
- Taylorsville Lake in Spencer County, Kentucky has water-quality measurements published by Kentucky DOW, shown here as reported. Phosphorus: 15.3 µg/L. Surface area: 3050 acres.
Is Taylorsville Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Taylorsville Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen), oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Taylorsville Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Taylorsville Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 63 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 3050 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Taylorsville Lake?
- Taylorsville Lake has 5 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Chowning Lane, Possum Ridge, Settlers Trace, Taylorsville Lake Tailwater, among others. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Taylorsville Lake?
- Taylorsville Lake has 5 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. 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 Taylorsville Lake?
- Taylorsville Lake has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Taylorsville Lake 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 Taylorsville Lake across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Kentucky's top lakes, each with its readings
Kentucky's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
More lakes in Kentucky
Other Lakes in Kentucky
Mesotrophic Lakes in Kentucky
Where this data comes from
32 measurements from 5 monitoring stations, 2014. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- KY WQX
21KY_WQX32 samples · 2014
Analytical methods
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
Monitoring station identifiers (5)
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)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles