With warm, dry spring, Flathead Lake not expected to reach full pool

Citing unseasonably warm and dry weather this spring,  Flathead Lake is not expected to reach full pool this summer, Energy Keepers said in a release Thursday. 

“Unseasonably warm and dry conditions have significantly decreased water supply in the Flathead River Basin and spring runoff is quickly receding bringing river flows to extremely low levels. With the dry hydrologic forecasts for the remainder of 2025 will be the third year in a row of abnormally hot and dry conditions. The three years combined will be the driest consecutive years ever recorded for the Flathead Basin,” Keepers said. 

Energy Keepers is the tribal agency that operates the Seli’š Ksanka Qlispe’ Project Dam at the foot of the lake. 

The dry conditions mean the lake is expected to get about eight inches below full pool or 2,892.3 feet on June 19 and then recede after that to 2,891.5 feet on July 12. Full pool is 2,893 feet above sea level.

“The (drought) conditions have forced operations at SKQ to again be at license required minimums and filling Flathead Lake as aggressively as possible while avoiding flood control limits. In spite of these operational sacrifices ... the melted snow remaining will not get Flathead Lake to full pool.”

“These unprecedented dry conditions are not only taxing on resources they are also extremely impactful to generation of electricity from the SKQ facility,” said Brian Lipscomb, Energy Keepers CEO. “Electricity generation from the SKQ facility will be 10 percent below normal for this year, add that to the two years that we have just experienced, and this will put us at 393 GWh of electricity generation below normal. That is enough electricity to power between 33,000 and 41,000 homes or a city about the size of Missoula for a year.” 

Energy Keepers Inc. responded to these emerging conditions in early spring and began coordinating with its partners while implementing the license-required Drought Management Plan.  

On March 13, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved a deviation request to allow Keepers to capture as much run-off as possible rather than the full winter draft requirement. These actions protect lower Flathead River minimum flows while filling Flathead Lake as early as possible. As much runoff as possible was captured bringing lake elevations to 3 feet from full pool on May 26. Dam operators have maintained minimum flows since then, Keepers said.

While recreational boating and fishing can continue at any lake elevation with the accessible public boat ramps, lake users should be aware that lakefront boat storage and dock access may be affected if these water level forecasts are realized. As forecasts are updated through the months of June and July EKI will update the public to any changes.

The other big water body in the system, the Hungry Horse Reservoir, was listed at about 12 feet below full pool on Wednesday, at 3,548 feet above sea level.

Full pool is 3,560. The reservoir typically fills to full pool on the week of July 4 or the week after. Projections on whether it will reach that this year were not immediately available.

See updated forecasts on Flathead Lake levels with inflows and outflows at: 

https://energykeepersinc.com/flathead-lake-data/