Highest elevation lakes & reservoirs in Oklahoma by altitude
While lake levels can flucuate frequently based on several circumstances, the altitude/elevation of a lake is based on its normal water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level. For a reservoir, this water level is also known as “full pond” or “full pool”.Low lake levels can occur due to deliberate seasonal draw downs for irrigation or impending snow melt, reduced water inflows, drought and evaporation, residential or commercial water demands, and hydropower generation. Some lakes’ minimum and maximum elevations are virtually the same. Lakes that generate hydropower may vary by several feet – according to power demand. Lakes whose primary purpose is to prevent flooding can seasonally vary by 100 feet or more. When some lakes reach their minimum elevation, their boat ramps may not be long enough to permit boat access – and boats docked on shallow parts of the lake may end up on dry ground. In those cases, kayakers and shore-based anglers may be among the few happy recreational users of the lake.
A lake’s highest water level, measured by the lake’s surface distance above sea level, that can occur during flooding. A lake’s highest possible maximum elevation is usually the top of the lake’s dam or spillway. At lakes that include residential development, government regulations usually forbid the construction of homes below a lake’s maximum elevation.
You can find many of the world’s highest-elevated lakes on LakeLubbers. Lakes with the lowest elevations (known by LakeLubbers) are shown on the final page of that list. Note: For some lakes, "Altitude/Elevation" data is unknown, so this table may display fewer lakes than the total 48 articles we have published for Oklahoma lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US Southwest Region > Oklahoma > Compared by highest altitude/elevation in feet. This list does not represent all lakes in Oklahoma, only the 48 Oklahoma lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Elevation in feet |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Fort Supply Lake, OK (Oklahoma, Red Carpet Country, OK, US Southwest Region, USA) |
2,028 ft | With 1,800 acres of clear water, Fort Supply Lake in Woodward County, Oklahoma is an outdoor enthusiast’s ideal recreational area. The lake is located… |
| Canton Lake, OK (Oklahoma, Red Carpet Country, OK, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,626 ft | Canton Lake is an expansive body of water in northwestern Oklahoma’s Red Carpet Country (named for its red soil). The United States Army Corps of Engi… |
| Lake Altus-Lugert, OK (Great Plains Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,562 ft | Also known as Lugert-Altus Reservoir Lake Altus-Lugert is a 6,260-acre reservoir nestled in the Great Plains region of Southwest Oklahoma. The lake is located 17 miles north of the town o… |
| Tom Steed Lake, OK (Great Plains Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,423 ft | Also known as Tom Steed Reservoir Tom Steed Lake lies on West Otter Creek, nestled in the heart of the Great Plains Country, north of the Oklahoma-Texas border. Boasting 31 miles of sh… |
| Lake Stanley Draper, OK (Frontier Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,191 ft | Also known as Lake Draper Lake Stanley Draper is a big city lake in the big city! Formed in 1963 to provide a water source for Oklahoma City, Lake Draper has also proved to be… |
| Great Salt Plains Lake, OK (Oklahoma, Red Carpet Country, OK, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,139 ft | With over 8,600 acres of water and 41 miles of shoreline, Great Salt Plains Lake in northern Oklahoma’s Red Carpet Country is an outdoor enthusiast’s… |
| Lake Thunderbird, OK (Frontier Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,049 ft | Also known as Thunderbird Reservoir, Thunderbird Lake No place could be better suited to recreation than Oklahoma’s Lake Thunderbird. Located in the Frontier Country Region, Lake Thunderbird provides recr… |
| Kaw Lake, KS/OK (Kansas, Oklahoma, Red Carpet Country, OK, South Central Kansas, US Midwest Region, US Southwest Region, USA) |
1,044 ft | Also known as Kaw Reservoir Kaw Lake is a large lake covering an area of 17,000 acres. Its three fingerlike “arms” lie in two midwestern states, Oklahoma and Kansas. Kaw Lake is… |
| Waurika Lake, OK (Great Plains Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
963 ft | Also known as Waurika Reservoir, Lake Waurika Located on Beaver Creek, a tributary of the Red River, Waurika Lake was created to provide flood damage reduction, irrigation, water supply, water qua… |
| Arbuckle Lake, OK (Arbuckle Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
885 ft | Also known as Lake of the Arbuckles, Lake Arbuckles, Lake Arbuckle, Arbuckle Reservoir Oklahoma’s Chickasaw National Recreation Area draws over three and a half million visitors a year and their main attraction is Lake of the Arbuckles.… |
| Heyburn Lake, OK (Green Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
784 ft | In the Green Country of northeastern Oklahoma, Heyburn Lake lies in a setting of gently sloping hills with a thickly wooded area that celebrates each… |
| Birch Lake, OK (Green Country, OK, Oklahoma, US Southwest Region, USA) |
774 ft | Also known as Birch Reservoir, Lake Birch Birch Lake is nestled into northeast Oklahoma’s Green Country. Fall and spring turn the prairie grasses and hardwood tree leaves around the lake into… |