Photos: Lake Lanier water levels, highs and lows

Gwinnett County

Photos: Lake Lanier water levels, highs and lows

Periodic droughts and flooding lead to high and low water levels that challenge authorities, business owners, boaters and other recreational users.

Boat ramps are closed due to low water levels on Lake Lanier at Mary Alice Park on Monday.

Lake Lanier gives a new meaning to the word dry-dock as a cove on the northeast side of the lake near Gainesville, Ga., shrinks further away from the normal-pool level leaving boat docks high and dry in this aerial view Saturday 3/1/08. Lanier provides drinking water to more than 3 million metro Atlantans. David Tulis / AJC

Because of low lake levels in the south, water releases at Buford Dam at Lake Lanier were increased, despite the drought conditions. Lakes to the south are now at optimum levels, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Lake Lanier is at its highest level in nearly two years. The water level was posted as being 1,069.46 feet on Wednesday, March 27, 2013 1.54 feet below the full pool of 1,071. Heavy winter rains have reversed a trend that saw the lake dwindle last December to its lowest levels since the great drought.

Lake Lanier, the life source of water for close to 4 million metro Atlantans, is at its highest level in nearly two years, a mere cloudburst shy of full pool. At right is the Lake Lanier Dam as seen on Wednesday, March 27, 2013.

DRY AS A BONE--November 26, 2012 - Cumming, Ga: A "Slow No Wake," sign is shown far from the water due to low water levels on Lake Lanier at Mary Alice Park Monday afternoon in Cumming, Ga., November 26, 2012. Mary Alice Park is a Corps of Engineers Park whose boat ramp and floating docks are closed due to low water levels. Lake Lanier is at its lowest level since the historic drought of several years ago, when lakeside businesses lost millions in recreation revenue and boaters were unable to launch their crafts. Monday's level was 1,058 feet above sea level, 13 feet below full pool. The last time Lake Lanier was at that level was in March 2009, the last days of the two-year drought that ravaged the state. JASON GETZ / JGETZ@AJC.COM

Floating docks rest on dry land far from the water due to low water levels on Georgia's Lake Lanier. Lake Lanier is at its lowest level since the historic drought of 2009, when lakeside businesses lost millions in recreation revenue and boaters were unable to launch their crafts.

Visitors walk along the high banks of Lake Lanier at Mary Alice Park on Monday near Cumming, Ga., November 26, 2012. Mary Alice Park is a Corps of Engineers Park whose boat ramp and floating docks are closed due to low water levels.

Lanier water levels have dipped so much that the shell of the Gainesville Speedway, covered when the federal government built Buford Dam and filled the lake in the 1950s, can be seen along the shore at Laurel Park in Gainesville. The dirt track where stock cars once ran is pictured. David Coughlin made this and the following black and white prints from negatives owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

A view of Lake Lanier and its many expensive waterfront properties that have suffered with the lower water levels despite potentially receiving a boost from recent rains that swept through the area. Thursday, April 17, 2008. / Pouya Dianat / AJC

The last time Lake Lanier hit such a low mark was during the 2007-09 drought.

Boaters move in and out of Sunset Cove on Lake Lanier in August at the height of boating season. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to release more water from the lake to help deal with drought conditions farther south.

The Lake Lanier Polar Bear Plunge has been delayed until February 2017 due to low water levels. (Credit: The Gainesville Times)

A pair of boats and a dock sit on the dry lake bed in Six Mile Creek during drought conditions at Lake Lanier on Thursday, Nov. 17, 2016, near Cumming. Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

November 17, 2016, Cumming: Wave runners and boat docks sit on the bottom of a cove in Young Deer Creek at Lake Lanier from drought conditions on Thursday, Nov. 17, 2016, near Cumming. Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

A boat dock sits on the bottom of a cove in Young Deer Creek at Lake Lanier from drought conditions on Nov. 17 near Cumming. Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

Falling water levels at Lake Lanier could lead to boat ramp and dock closures, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers advises. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS

The state Environmental Protection Division on Friday declared a “drought response Level 1” for 53 North Georgia counties, including Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett. Riverkeepers and water planners fear the beginning of a new, sustained drought across metro Atlanta, similar to when this photo of Lake Lanier was taken in November 2011, when the lake was more than 11.5 feet below full pool. Vino Wong vwong@ajc.com

A look back at Lake Lanier during the drought of 2007. The new rules state it will be up to the director of the state Environmental Protection Division to monitor climate conditions and decide which areas of the state are in drought and what level of restrictions might be necessary.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is set to release its new manual for the management of the Chattahoochee River and five reservoirs, including Lake Lanier. The plan gives metro Atlanta enough water to accommodate the region’s water needs until 2050. “Boy oh boy, this looks like everything we could have possibly hoped for,” said Brad Currey, a board member of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District. “It is highly significant in every conceivable respect in that it apparently addresses droughts, minimum flows of the Chattahoochee and hydropower.” David Tulis dtulis@gmail.com

A speedboat sweeps around a cove on the east side of Lake Lanier near a steep dropoff. Officials said several drownings were reported that could have been caused by underwater hazards like this related to the drought.

Boaters have to be extra careful because of the low water levels.

Boaters on Lake Lanier on the Independence Day holiday weekend had to be especially careful because of ongoing drought conditions. On July 5, lake levels were at 1055.96, about 15 feet below full pool for this time of the year. Dropoffs, visible in this photo, are hazardous to swimmers because most visitors are expecting a smooth bank area and can be surprised at the dramatic elevation change close to shore.

A closer look at the five big houseboats anchoring the floating festivities at Lake Lanier Islands. The photo shows dozens more smaller boats with sunbathers and swimmers at Cocktail Cove. However, underwater obstacles revealed by the drought challenge visitors, "The shallower water conditions could expose sandbars or stumps to those swimming or boating," Corps spokesman E. Patrick Robbins said in a statement last week.

Boat docks are getting farther and farther from the shore as Lake Lanier's drought conditons continue through the summer. This photo is an aerial view taken on the Independence Day weekend.

Less rainfall and steady releases from Buford Dam are showing parts of the lake that have not been seen in many years. As of Nov. 3 the water level stood at 1,055 feet, or 16 feet below the summer level of 1,071 feet.

This month, the Army Corps of Engineers proposed a drought contingency plan to keep more water in the lake.

The ongoing effects of Georgia's historic drought are seen in the rapidly receding water and expansion of the sandy shoreline in this Nov. 3 photo.

1 / 28

Boat ramps are closed due to low water levels on Lake Lanier at Mary Alice Park on Monday.

Today's Gallery Headlines

McCaysville residents contend with flood aftermath

Mike Collins supporters gather for election results

Keisha Lance Bottoms supporters rally as election results come in

Rick Jackson supporters gather as election results roll in

More Galleries

PHOTOS: Renderings of Amsterdam Walk redo and its first apartment building

PHOTOS: Renderings of Jamestown's North Point Mall development plan

PHOTOS: Renderings of Atlanta Botanical Garden expansion and Beltline connection

PHOTOS: Formula 1 demo brings motorsports to Atlanta