Bighorn Lake
U.S. Highway 14A, 14 miles east of Lovell

Before you is Bighorn Lake. Yellowtail Dam at Fort Smith, Montana backs up the Bighorn River 71 miles to this point. Completed in 1968, the dam provides hydroelectric power to the region, water for irrigation and opportunities for recreation.
Fluctuation in river flow and differing demands in electric power will cause extreme change in the lake elevation. At this location a 30 foot change in water level could move the lake shore 5 miles.

At normal pool, the surface of the entire lake covers 12,685 acres. At this time the area before you is under water to the left of the causeway. This represents a 30 foot rise over the normal annual low water level, a difference amounting to 90 billion gallons of water capable of producing 111 million kilowatt hours of electricity at the dam.

For several months each year the water level is too low to cover this area of the reservoir. While the reservoir is drawn down, the ground exposed by the receding water provides breeding habitat for amphibians and aquatic insects, which provide food for fish in Bighorn Lake.