Canyon Lake (Texas)

Man-made reservoir in Texas, United States This article is about the reservoir. For the census-designated place, see Canyon Lake, Texas.

Canyon Lake
Aerial view of Canyon Lake and Dam
Canyon LakeShow map of TexasCanyon LakeShow map of the United States
Location	Texas Hill Country, Comal County, Texas, US
Coordinates	29°52′53″N 98°14′24″W / 29.88139°N 98.24000°W / 29.88139; -98.24000
Type	Flood control reservoir
Primary inflows	Guadalupe River
Primary outflows	Guadalupe River
Basin countries	United States
Surface area	8,230 acres (33.3 km2)
Max. depth	134 ft (41 m)
Water volume	382,000 acre⋅ft (0.471 km3)
Shore length1	80 mi (130 km)
Surface elevation	909 ft (277 m)
References	[1]
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Canyon Lake is a reservoir on the Guadalupe River in the Texas Hill Country in the United States. Canyon Lake is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir formed on the Guadalupe River in Comal County by Canyon Dam, which is located about sixteen miles northwest of New Braunfels. The dam, lake, and all adjacent property are managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Water rights, waste water treatment, and hydroelectric generating facilities are managed by the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority. Construction of the dam began in 1958 and was completed in 1964. The reservoir serves to provide flood control and water supply for the communities downstream from the dam. The lake is also a popular recreational destination.

Geography

[edit]

Canyon Lake is located at 29°52′53″N 98°14′24″W / 29.88139°N 98.24000°W / 29.88139; -98.24000.[2] Please note, this GPS coordinate does not correspond to a public access location (please see the section below on Public Access in the Recreation section). It is located in northern Comal County, Texas, on the northeastern fringe of the San Antonio-New Braunfels MSA. It is about 35 mi (56 km) northeast of Downtown San Antonio and 40 mi (64 km) southwest of Austin. Towns in the immediate vicinity of the lake include Canyon City, Cranes Mill, Hancock, Fischer, Sattler, and Startzville, all part of the census-designated place known as Canyon Lake, Texas. Larger towns nearby include New Braunfels and San Marcos.

History

[edit]

Construction of Canyon Dam began in 1958 to provide both flood control and water conservation. Impoundment of the lake began in 1964, and the lake was filled to its conservation level in 1968.

Flood protection

[edit]

Flood protection is provided for nearly 250 square miles (650 km2) of land downstream from Canyon Dam. The canyons of the upper Guadalupe River have a capacity to carry 40,000–50,000 cubic feet per second (1,100–1,400 m3/s); however, the channel on the lower Guadalupe River, downstream from the Balcones Escarpment, can carry only 13,000–30,000 cubic feet per second (370–850 m3/s). This has led to serious flooding in the lower Guadalupe River Basin, including a major flood in New Braunfels in 1972 which was caused by heavy rains just downstream from Canyon Dam.

Canyon Dam protected downstream areas from major floods in 1978, 1987, 1991, 1992 and 1998. A record flood in July 2002 overtopped the spillway by more than seven feet (2.1 m) and caused significant damage below Canyon Dam.

In the 2002 flood, the peak flow was about 70,000 cubic feet per second (2,000 m3/s). The amount of water that flowed over the spillway was about 3½ times the amount of water that the reservoir holds. Erosion over the course of three days washed away bedrock below the spillway to reveal what is now the Canyon Lake Gorge. Water continued to flow over the spillway for six weeks.

Water conservation

[edit]

The Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) has rights to the water in the conservation pool of the lake. This water is used to operate several small hydroelectric plants downstream from New Braunfels and for municipal water supply, irrigation, and industrial uses. GBRA built a hydroelectric facility at Canyon Dam in August 1987; it was put into service in February 1989.

Recreation

[edit]

Canyon Lake is a center for recreation in the area. The Corps of Engineers built and maintains eight park areas around the lake for camping, swimming, boating and picnicking. Bank fishing is available in all park areas, and a fishing dock can be found in Cranes Mill Park on the south side of the lake. Comal County provides several public boat ramps for access to the lake. Hike, bike and equestrian trails are available, as is limited hunting (archery only) and professional fishing guide services.

There are several public parks on the shores of Canyon Lake that allow access to the lake for swimming, fishing and boating.

There are 2 marinas located on the lake. The marinas have boats and jet skis available for rent.

There are several public boat ramps on the lake as well as private boat ramps. Public access boat ramps are available free of charge. The private boat ramps at the marinas or in some of the parks are available to the public for a fee. There is no fishing or swimming allowed at any of the boat ramps.

Lake level concerns

[edit]

Plans by GBRA to sell water from Canyon Lake to supply the fast-growing San Antonio and Austin regions have raised concerns that the lake will fall well below the established conservation pool level, potentially causing problems ranging from erosion and weakening of Canyon Dam to a decline in property values and possible health issues from the exposure of long-submerged land. This has led to several administrative actions and lawsuits over the future of Canyon Lake.

On September 1, 2023, Canyon Lake dropped to its lowest pool level on record.[3] As the water level continued to drop, ruins started appear that had previously been under water, including an old bridge and rubble from an old house. A cave that had previously been under water also became accessible without the use of diving equipment.[4][5][6][7]

On June 9, 2025, the amount of water flowing into Canyon Lake reached lows not seen in 100 years.[8]

References

[edit]

1. ^ Depth of Canyon Reservoir. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
2. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
3. ^ "Canyon Lake drops to lowest level on record as drought persists". September 2023.
4. ^ Sottile, Amanda Jackson,Zoe (September 30, 2023). "Underwater cave appears as water levels drop at Canyon Lake in Texas". CNN. Retrieved November 13, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
5. ^ Johnson, Stephanie (September 28, 2023). "Canyon Lake High School Senior Rides Jet Ski Right into Newly Discovered Cave, Describes It as Muddy, Cold and Wet". My Canyon Lake. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
6. ^ Ybarra, Gabriella. "Comal County drought unearths underwater cave at Canyon Lake". San Antonio Express-News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2025. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
7. ^ Wilson, Catherine. "Hidden caves, lost towns revealed by Canyon Lake's historic lows". MySA. Archived from the original on April 15, 2025. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
8. ^ "Water flow hits 'lowest' levels in 100 years in Hill Country rivers feeding Canyon Lake". KXAN Austin. June 9, 2025. Archived from the original on July 23, 2025. Retrieved November 13, 2025.

External links

[edit]

• http://mycanyonlake.com Online Community Bulletin Board and News

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Canyon Lake (Texas).

• Canyon Lake page at U.S. Corps of Engineers website
• Canyon Lake from the Handbook of Texas Online
• Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority
• Texas Parks and Wildlife: Canyon Lake
• Friends of Canyon Lake website
• Canyon Lake Gorge Preservation Society
• Lake Canyon Yacht Club
• Hill Country Yacht Club
• The Edwards Aquifer: Canyon Lake

v t e State of Texas
Austin (capital)
Topics	Outline Architecture Climate climate change List of counties in Texas Cuisine Dialects Geography Government Healthcare History Languages Law Literature Mass media newspapers radio TV National Historic Landmarks National Register of Historic Places Sites Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Sports Symbols Texans Time Tourist attractions Transportation
Society	Abortion Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Gambling Gun laws Homelessness LGBTQ rights Pride Politics
Regions	Ark‑La‑Tex Big Bend Boca Chica Blackland Prairies Brazos Valley Central Texas Coastal Bend Concho Valley Cross Timbers East Texas Edwards Plateau Golden Triangle Hill Country Llano Estacado Northeast Texas North Texas Osage Plains Panhandle Permian Basin Piney Woods Rio Grande Valley Southeast Texas South Plains South Texas Texoma Trans-Pecos West Texas
Metropolitanareas	Abilene Amarillo Austin–Round Rock (Greater Austin) Beaumont–Port Arthur Brownsville–Harlingen College Station–Bryan Corpus Christi Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington (DFW) El Paso Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land (Greater Houston) Killeen–Temple Laredo Longview–Kilgore Lubbock McAllen–Edinburg–Mission Midland Odessa San Angelo San Antonio–New Braunfels Sherman–Denison Texarkana Tyler Victoria Waco Wichita Falls
Texas portal

v t e Major reservoirs and lakes of Texas
East Texas Lake Athens Lake B. A. Steinhagen Lake Bob Sandlin Caddo Lake Cedar Creek Reservoir Lake Cherokee Lake Conroe Lake Cypress Springs Lake Fork Reservoir Lake Houston County Lake Jacksonville Lake O' the Pines Lake Livingston Lake Martin Lake Monticello Lake Murvaul Lake Nacogdoches Lake Palestine Sam Rayburn Reservoir Lake Striker Lake Sulphur Springs Toledo Bend Reservoir Lake Tyler Wright Patman Lake
North Texas Lake Amon G. Carter Aquilla Lake Lake Arlington Lake Arrowhead Lake Bardwell Belton Lake Benbrook Lake Bonham City Lake Lake Bridgeport Lake Brownwood Lake Cisco Lake Crook Eagle Mountain Lake Lake Georgetown Lake Graham Lake Granbury Granger Lake Grapevine Lake Lake Halbert Hubbard Creek Lake Lake Hubert H Moss Jim Chapman Lake Joe Pool Lake Lake Kickapoo Lavon Lake Lake Leon Lewisville Lake Lake Limestone Lake Lost Creek Lake Mineral Wells Mountain Creek Lake Navarro Mills Lake New Terrell City Lake Lake Nocona Lake Palo Pinto Lake Pat Cleburne Pat Mayse Lake Possum Kingdom Lake Proctor Lake Lake Ray Hubbard Lake Ray Roberts Richland-Chambers Reservoir Comanche Creek Reservoir Stillhouse Hollow Lake Lake Tawakoni Lake Texoma Lake Waco Lake Waxahachie Lake Weatherford Lake Whitney Lake Worth
Central Texas Lake Abilene Lake Austin Brady Creek Reservoir Lake Buchanan Canyon Lake Hords Creek Reservoir Inks Lake Lake Lyndon B. Johnson Lake Marble Falls O.H. Ivie Lake Lake Travis
West Texas Lake Alan Henry Champion Creek Reservoir Lake Coleman Lake Colorado City E.V. Spence Reservoir Fort Phantom Hill Lake Greenbelt Reservoir Hords Creek Reservoir Lake J. B. Thomas Lake Kemp Mackenzie Reservoir Lake Meredith Millers Creek Reservoir Lake Nasworthy North Fork Buffalo Creek Reservoir O.C. Fisher Reservoir Oak Creek Reservoir Palo Duro Reservoir Red Bluff Reservoir Lake Stamford Lake Sweetwater Twin Buttes Reservoir White River Reservoir
South Texas Amistad Reservoir Choke Canyon Reservoir Coleto Creek Reservoir Lake Corpus Christi Lake Houston Medina Lake Somerville Lake Lake Texana

Authority control databases: National	United States Israel