Lake Shasta waters rise during atmospheric river. Here’s how full reservoir is

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Lake Shasta waters rise during atmospheric river. Here’s how full reservoir is

Lake Shasta waters lapped 30 feet from its top after an atmospheric river dropped more than 8 inches of rain in the Redding area since last Friday — and a new storm is expected to bring more rain to the region.

Last weekend’s rainstorm pushed Lake Shasta levels up almost four feet between last Friday and Sunday, according to California Department of Water Resources data.

Here’s how full Lake Shasta and other North State lakes were at the start of the week, and how much more rain Lake Shasta could get.

How high are Lake Shasta water levels?

As of Monday, Lake Shasta levels sat at 1,037 feet above sea level — up 5 feet from the previous day, according to the state. The lake has gone up nearly 10 feet since last Friday, Jan. 31.

California officials consider Lake Shasta full when water levels reach 1,067 feet above sea level, so there’s room for more. That’s good since two more storms — the first of which started Monday — could drop another 3.5 inches for rain by Friday, the weather service forecasted.

Anderson Creek floods property along ****** Ferry Road south of Anderson on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. An atmospheric river moving over the Redding area through the weekend dumped about 8 inches of rain.

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How full is Lake Shasta?

As of midnight Monday, Lake Shasta held 82% of its total capacity.

That’s about a fifth more (120%) than it usually holds this time of year, according to historic data from the California Department of Water Resources.

How many families would it take to drink, wash, use up water currently in Lake Shasta?

Just for fun, here’s an approximation of how many California families it would take to use up the water currently in Lake Shasta in a calendar year.

Scientists measure water volume in acre feet. One acre-foot is equivalent to 325,851 gallons of water. That’s “considered enough water to meet the needs of two families of four for one year,”

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.

As of Monday morning, Lake Shasta held not quite 3.6 million AF of its 4.55 million AF capacity. That’s enough for about seven million families for a year — not accounting for major variables like evaporation, according to San Diego’s formula.

How much have Lake Shasta waters changed since the beginning of the wet season?

Winter weather fluctuated from very dry, to very wet, to very dry again since November.

Lake Shasta waters fell to their lowest point of 2024 (985.52 feet) on Nov. 18, according to the state.

More: How deep are Lake Shasta, Lake Oroville, 5 other popular California reservoirs?

Then lake levels went up 40 feet by Jan. 2, 2025, following six weeks of rain and an unusually wet December. The weather service reported Redding got 19.76 inches of rain between Oct. 1, 2024 and Jan. 9, 2025, compared to its historical average of 13.29 inches.

Until last Friday, most of January was bone dry, with unusually warm afternoons and freezing cold mornings.

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Trinity Lake, as seen from Trinity Dam, was 85 percent full on May 1, 2024.

How full are other North State lakes, Trinity and Oroville?

Lake Shasta isn’t the only North State lake benefiting from winter storms.

The California Department of Water Resources reported the following water levels at these far Northern California reservoirs. Data reflects changes between midnight on Friday and midnight on Tuesday.

Lake Oroville in Butte County went up more than 10.21 feet since Friday morning. It’s 79% full. That’s 131% of its historic average for this time of year.

Trinity Lake (formerly Clair Engle Lake) located in Trinity County, northeast of Weaverville, went up 3.26 feet. It’s 80% full, 125% of its historic average.

Record Searchlight reporters Damon Arthur and David Benda contributed to this story.

(This story has been updated with new water level figures for Lake Shasta and California reservoirs.)

Jessica Skropanic is a features reporter for the Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. She covers science, arts, social issues and news stories. Follow her on

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