Lower water levels and more beach space expected at Bear Lake this summer

File photo of Bear Lake. the Caribbean of the West as it is sometimes called is 109 square miles of water used for recreation, water storage for irrigation and control floods down stream on the Bear River.

GARDEN CITY – The water level at Bear Lake has been high this year, but it didn’t quite reach the 5,922.3 feet mark from a year ago when the lake nearly reached capacity.

According to Claudia Cottle of Bear Lake Watch, the lake’s elevation has likely reached its peak for the summer and will start to drop. On Monday the lake elevation was recorded at 5,920.4 feet, Cottle said.

“From this point on the water will be going down, most likely, as long as the irrigators will be needing to pull water out,” she said. “It’s supposed to be hot and dry for the next little while.”

Cottle said it is normal for Bear Lake to drop three or four feet after reaching its peak, and that could be the case this year. The high water levels a year ago limited beach space, which likely won’t be an issue this summer.

“Where there is access to public beaches, there will be more space,” Cottle said. “You’ll be able to spread out a little bit.”

According to Cottle, the runoff has slowed down and it is expected that no more water will be stored in the lake this season.

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