AlabamaFishing Atlas
Lay Dam on the Coosa River in Alabama, the 1914 hydroelectric dam that created Lay Lake

Lay Dam Generation Schedule & Lay Lake Water Level

Lay Lake was at 395.84 ft as of Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST. Lay Dam: ● generating — 4,600 cfs.

Photo: Altairisfar · Public domain / CC
Lay Lake and the other Coosa River lakes
7 lakes. Tap a pin to open the lake.
Lake locations: Atlas lake records. Map tiles © OpenFreeMap / OpenStreetMap contributors.
Pool level
395.84 ft
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Vs. this date last year
Same as last year (within 0.05 ft)
Last year: 395.87 ft (Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST, 2025)
Running water now?
Generating — 4,600 cfs
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Total release below dam
4,600 cfs
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST
Tailwater
312.56 ft
Read Nov 13, 10:00 AM CST

When does Lay Dam usually run?

Over the last 7 days the powerhouse was turning in 145 of 165 hourly readings, peaking at 10,513 cfs. It ran most often midnight–2 AM, 4 AM–midnight 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: 10,513 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 395.49 to 396.12 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)
395.00395.25395.50395.75396.00396.25Oct 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 Lay Lake

If you fish below Lay Dam or up the Coosa 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: Lay Lake fishing, structure and seasons. Launching? Find a boat ramp. Every lake on one board: Alabama lake levels.

Other Coosa River lakes: Weiss Lake · Neely Henry Lake · Logan Martin Lake · Lake Mitchell · Lake Jordan · Walter Bouldin 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, 11:17 AM CST.