Browse Map

Explore away

Explore Map Collection

Check out our basemaps

Print a Map Plus

Generate a high-quality PDF

Field Guide

Discover local flora, fauna, geology, and more

Local Flora & Fauna

Learn the ecology of your area

Local Geology

Learn the geologic formation at your feet

Get Started or Sign In

Welcome

Continue with Apple

Already have an account? Sign In

MAP

Topo

Measure

Topo

Ecoregions

Public Lands

...

BASEMAPS

Default Weather

Temperature

Smoke

...

WEATHER

Optima Lake

Lake on Great Plains near Hardesty, OK

Oklahoma Fishing Regulations

Print Map

Generate High-Quality PDF

On the Web

On Wikipedia

Optima Lake was built to be a reservoir in Texas County, Oklahoma. The site is located just north of Hardesty and east of Guymon in the Oklahoma Panhandle. The earthen Optima Lake Dam (National ID # OK20510) was completed in 1978 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, with a height of 120 feet, and a length at its crest of 16,875 feet. Although designed to contain a maximum of 618,500 acre-feet of water, the lake never reached more than 5 percent of its capacity, and remains effectively empty. Rapid declines in streamflow related to large-scale pumping from the High Plains Aquifer, also known as the Ogallala Aquifer, coincided with the completion of dam construction to make this lake a dramatic example of unanticipated environmental impacts. The US Army Corps of Engineers website…

Classified As

Lake