Upper Little York Lake
Cortland County, New York150 acresView mapDirections
Not Rated: one monitoring station are on record, but they measured water clarity only. LakeQuality’s A–F method grades total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity; clarity is shown, not scored.
- Impaired · Oxygen depletion (low DO)
- 42 ft max depth
- Limited data
Upper Little York Lake in Cortland County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 11 ft visibility. Surface area: 150 acres.
- Clarity
- 11 ft
- Max depth
- ~42 ft est.
- Area
- 150 acres
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Upper Little York Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Upper Little York Lake in Cortland County, New York — 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 Upper Little York Lake
Prices for Sep 11–13, 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 whole trip? See where to stay at New York’s top lakes →
Watch Upper Little York Lake’s letter
Email me if this lake’s grade moves. Grades stay free.
Or email
Why Upper Little York Lake has no grade
Upper Little York Lake has monitoring on record from one station, but only water clarity was measured. LakeQuality’s A–F letter uses total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity against EPA National Lakes Assessment condition classes. With none of those grading measurements on record, Upper Little York Lake is Not Rated — not an F. Its 11-foot median from 8 readings collected 2020 is still shown as clarity, but clarity alone cannot earn a letter.
Not Rated is EPA Integrated Reporting Category 3 — insufficient information. Everything below that has been measured is still reported on this page.
Sampling is run by NYSDEC and volunteer programs, and published through the EPA Water Quality Portal. Read the full grading methodology.
Upper Little York Lake is a 150-acre lake in Cortland County, New York with an estimated average depth of about 42 feet.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NYSDEC, last sampled 2020-09-20. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Upper Little York Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water11 ft of visibility
Swimming Safety
Not ratedLimited data
The letter is not a swimming clearance. Upper Little York Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Water quality measurements for Upper Little York Lake
These readings exist but are not enough for an A–F grade — see why.
Good clarity, visible to about 11 ft. TSI 43.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 11 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | No recent samples | |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No recent samples | |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 43 | Mesotrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~42 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~8 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 150 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. New York has not published bathymetry for Upper Little York Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
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.
Fishing Upper Little York Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Upper Little York Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Little York Dam (completed 2015), built primarily for recreation on the WEST BR TIOUGHNIOGA RIVER; concrete-type dam, 7 ft tall and 250 ft long.
- Surface area
- 150 ac
- Normal storage
- 532 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 819 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 32.6 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Significant
- Owner
- CORTLAND COUNTY
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NY01023 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Upper Little York Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit NY0602-0017 · Official waterbody report · Matched by proximity (0.51 km)
Nearby Lakes in Cortland County
Frequently asked questions about Upper Little York Lake
Where is Upper Little York Lake?
- Upper Little York Lake is a lake in Cortland County, New York. LakeQuality has not rated this lake (UNRATED) — the only measurement available is water clarity, which is not a water-quality indicator on its own — EPA's National Lakes Assessment does not grade clarity.
What is the water quality grade for Upper Little York Lake?
- Upper Little York Lake in Cortland County, New York is not rated for water quality — its monitoring record does not meet the evidence bar. Water clarity: 11 ft visibility. Surface area: 150 acres.
Is Upper Little York Lake safe to swim in?
- The letter is not a swimming clearance. Upper Little York Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Upper Little York Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Upper Little York Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 42 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 150 acres.
Explore Upper Little York Lake across LakeQuality
More New York Lake Rankings
Other Lakes in New York
Mesotrophic Lakes in New York
Where this data comes from
8 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS8 samples · 2020
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)