Hartwell Full to Start 2014

2013 was a wet year for the entire Hartwell Lake sub-basin.

That is according to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Spokesman Russell Wicke.

“This year for the Hartwell sub-basin, this is the second wettest year ever reported,” said Wicke.  “We have got a total of 75.4 inches of rain and the only year that we have on record that we had more than that was 1949, when we had 75.7.”

The Corps began measuring that figure in 1948.

Wicke said that all of the rain that the Hartwell sub-basin received over the last 12 months has certainly helped lake levels at Hartwell.

“We are above our guide curve because in December we have seen an exceptional amount of rain for the entire basin, so lake levels are about a foot and a half above what we consider the normal summer full pool,” said Wicke.

Wicke said summer full pool at Hartwell is 660 feet.

He said that the Corps is working to get the lake level back down slightly to have it in line with what is normal for this time of the year.

“We are working on getting those levels back closer to guide curve, but we are going to do it efficiently,” said Wicke.

Moving forward, Wicke said that the lake level at Hartwell should remain strong all the way through the winter and into the spring.

“We expect stable levels in the upcoming months,” said Wicke.  “We are in our winter drawdown now, so levels might dip a little bit below the summer pool, but we expect them to come right back up to full before April.”

Wicke also reminded those using LakeHartwell that no matter the time of year, remember to be safe and wear a life vest while on the water.