Saylorville Lake

Saylorville Lake is a reservoir on the Des Moines River in Iowa, United States. It is located 11 mi upstream from the city of Des Moines, and 214 mi from the mouth of the Des Moines River at the Mississippi River. It was constructed as part of a flood control system for the Des Moines River as well as to aid in controlling flood crests on the Mississippi, of which the Des Moines is a tributary. The lake and dam is owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District.

At its normal level of 836 ft above sea level, Saylorville Lake covers an area of 5950 acre or 9.3 sqmi and reaches some 17 mi upstream. At full flood stage the lake can reach 16700 acre or 26.1 sqmi and reach 54 mi long. At this point any further flow into the lake is channelled over an emergency spillway to the west of the main dam structure. The record high stage for the reservoir was 892.03 ft above sea level set on July 11, 1993 during the Great Flood of 1993.

Construction of the Saylorville Dam was authorized by Congress in 1958. Excavation began at the site in July 1965, becoming fully operational in September 1977. The dam itself is 6750 ft long, 105 ft tall, and 44 ft wide at the top.

The lake is utilized for many recreational activities in the central Iowa area as well, as there is a large state park infrastructure surrounding the area of the lake, notably Jester Park and Big Creek State Park. The Corps of Engineers operates several recreation areas, campgrounds, and boat ramp facilities around the lake. Boating and swimming are very popular, as are camping, deer and game bird hunting, fishing, hiking, biking and disc golf. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 4 provides boating safety education and free vessel safety checks to boaters in the area.

Fish species that can be found in the lake include crappie, bluegill, green sunfish, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, brown trout, northern pike, common carp, white bass, walleye, yellow bass, american eel, flathead catfish, channel catfish, bullheads, and hybrid striped bass.