'Amazing:' Lake Shasta water level rises 40 feet in 6 weeks

Mar 03, 2025

David Raun keeps a close eye on what's going on with the water level at Lake Shasta. So far he likes what he has seen happen to California's largest reservoir over the past six weeks.

Since the lake level reached its lowest point of the year on Nov. 18, the reservoir has bounced back, rising about 40 feet since then, according to the California Department of Water Resources.

"It's been going up real strong. I mean, the rains have been great," Raun said. "The ground is saturated, and initially the dam was letting out quite a bit of water, but with all the rain in California, they're not letting out as much because everything's filling up fast."

Raun and his wife operate Shasta Lakeshore Retreat, which rents out homes to lake visitors, so they also have a business interest in whether the lake is full or low.

So far, Raun said the lake level is moving in the right direction, which could mean good things when the tourist season kicks in this spring.

"It went up three feet in one day a couple days ago, which is amazing, but it's been averaging almost a foot a day for acouple months now," Raun said.

On Nov. 18, the lake level was at 985.52 feet above sea level, according to the state. But several storms brought in heavy rainfall over a six-week span, raising the lake more than 40 feet, to 1026.20 in elevation.

The lake is considered full when the water level reaches 1,067 feet above sea level, so it still has a ways to go before it reaches maximum. Most of the rain in the North State falls from October to May.

As of Tuesday, Dec. 31, Lake Shasta was 129% of historical average for the date and 76% full, according to the state. Trinity Lake, the North State's other large reservoir, which is also operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, was at 124% of normal and 74% full.

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Raun said he is surprised at online commenters who complain when the Bureau of Reclamation releases water from Lake Shasta. He noted that water is stored behind Shasta Dam during the rainy season, and then in the summer and fall, water is sent downstream for cities and farms throughout much of California.

Many of the reservoirs in the Sierra Nevada are filled with snowmelt, but Lake Shasta is fed mainly by rain runoff.

During the past six weeks, millions of gallons of runoff have poured into the reservoir from the McCloud, Sacramento and Pit rivers, as well as the numerous creeks that feed the lake.

"It's beautiful up there right now. There's waterfalls flowing into the lake. We have a couple creeks that go right by our houses. They are just roaring right now because of all the heavy rain, which is nice," Raun said.

On Sunday, an average 61,062 cubic feet per second of water flowed into the reservoir, which at 7.48 gallons per cubic foot translates to 456,743 gallons of water gushing into the lake every second.

The department of water resources website says the lake has received about 35 inches of rain since the major storms began to fall over Lake Shasta after Nov. 18.

The rain this year hasn't been isolated over the lake. Redding and the rest of the North State have also received a generous amount of rain.

As of midnight Tuesday, Redding had received 41 inches of rain since Jan. 1, 2024, far above the 33 inches normally recorded at the Redding Regional Airport in that time span. Almost half of that, about 19 inches, was recorded at the airport since Oct. 1, the weather service said.

In the short-term, Redding is expected to receive more rain this week, with a chance of showers likely Wednesday and a chance of showers Thursday, according to the weather service. There's an 80% chance of showers Friday and then the forecast is for partly cloudy Saturday, the weather service said.

Reporter Damon Arthur welcomes story tips at 530-338-8834, by email at [email protected] and on Twitter at @damonarthur_RS. Help local journalism thrive by subscribing today!