AlabamaFishing Atlas
USACE Holt Lock and Dam on the Black Warrior River near Tuscaloosa, Alabama — aerial view of the lock, spillway, and Alabama Power hydroelectric plant

Holt Lock & Dam Generation Schedule & Holt Reservoir Water Level

Holt Reservoir was at 186.62 ft as of Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST. Holt Lock & Dam: ○ not generating.

Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers · Public domain (USACE federal work)
Holt Reservoir and the other Black Warrior River lakes
3 lakes. Tap a pin to open the lake.
Lake locations: Atlas lake records. Map tiles © OpenFreeMap / OpenStreetMap contributors.
Pool level
186.62 ft
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Vs. this date last year
0.12 ft higher than last year
Last year: 186.50 ft (Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST, 2025)
Running water now?
Not generating
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Total release below dam
0 cfs
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Tailwater
123.27 ft
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST

When does Holt Lock & Dam usually run?

Over the last 7 days the powerhouse was turning in 15 of 165 hourly readings, peaking at 11,032 cfs. It ran most often 6 PM–8 PM Central (on at least 4 of 7 days).

  • ● Powerhouse generating (cfs)
  • Empty gap = ○ not generating
010k20kSat Nov 7Sun Nov 8Mon Nov 9Tue Nov 10Wed Nov 11Thu Nov 12cfs
One bar per hourly reading, Central time. Dashed lines mark midnight. Peak in this window: 11,032 cfs.

That’s last week’s pattern, not a promise. Alabama Power posts tentative generation schedules on its lake pages at apcshorelines.com, and those can change with rain and power demand.

Last 30 days: this year vs. last year

Over the last 30 days the pool ranged from 185.94 to 186.88 ft. The Corps feed carries no guide-curve series for this lake, so there is no target line.

  • This year (solid)
  • Same dates last year (dashed)
185.50186.00186.50187.00Oct 16Oct 23Oct 30Nov 6Nov 13ft
Pool elevation in feet above mean sea level, last 30 days. Last year’s line is the same calendar dates one year earlier.

Reading the water on Holt Reservoir

If you fish below Holt Lock & Dam or up the Black Warrior River arms, the powerhousenumber is the one to watch. Moving water pulls bait and sets fish up on current breaks; slack water can make a tailrace go quiet. The pool level tells you the rest — how much water is over the shallow cover, and whether that ramp you like still has enough at the end of it.

Full lake guide: Holt Reservoir fishing, structure and seasons. Launching? Find a boat ramp. Every lake on one board: Alabama lake levels.

Other Black Warrior River lakes: Lewis Smith Lake · Bankhead Lake

Data source

Pool, guide-curve, powerhouse, spillway, release and tailwater numbers come straight from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mobile District CWMS feed, where Alabama Power reports hourly readings.This page re-checks the feed every 15 minutes; readings usually land an hour or two after they are taken. A reading older than 3 hours is marked stale. Elevations are feet above mean sea level; flows are cubic feet per second (cfs). Page checked Nov 13, 12:11 PM CST.