Canyon Lake is too full after heavy mid-July rains and the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority (GBRA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) will coordinate efforts to safely return the reservoir to its normal conservation-pool elevation of 909 feet (mean sea level).
Wednesday, the lake was at 909.99 feet.
Releases from the dam into the the Lower Guadalupe River @ Sattler are now 250 cubic feet-per-second (cfs) Thursday-Sunday and 150 cfs Monday-Wednesday.
This is good news for tubers along the Guadalupe River between Canyon Lake and New Braunfels.
The Water Oriented Recreation District of Comal County (WORD) said Horseshoe and River Road are seeing some of the best flow rates in years.
Hill Country flooding earlier in the month caused the reservoir to rise above its normal conservation pool into the flood pool, the portion of the reservoir designed to capture excess runoff during significant rainfall events.
Canyon Lake is beautiful and full of recreational opportunities but its primary purpose is flood control.
The Texas Hill Country is one of the most flood-prone regions in the country.
USACE owns and operates Canyon Lake but GBRA controls release rates when the lake is at or below full pool in order to meet contractual obligations to supply water to downstream customers.
The reservoir also provides water to Texas Water Company’s Canyon Lake customers.