Carlyle Lake
Carlyle Lake History
Have you ever wondered when the lake was completed and how big it really is?
It all started in 1933, when some Clinton County citizens came together and formed the Kaskaskia River Valley Project. They wanted to find solutions to the flooding problems along the Kaskaskia River. Their solution was to create a lake so they can control the flooding. The Flood Control Act of 1938 was approved by the Federal government for the construction of Carlyle Lake. Carlyle Lake was completed in April 1967 for flood control purposes. The Dam was dedicated in June of 1967.
The lake is 15 miles long and 3-1/2 miles wide and it covers 26,000 acres. The lake has two farm silo's sticking up in the middle of the lake. It is the largest man-made lake in Illinois and it is a great place for water recreation with motor boats, sail boats and fishermen.
Carlyle Lake is known to be one of the top ten inland sailing lakes in the United States. On windy days it makes a great place for sail boating. Windy days also create big waves that are dangerous for small vessels. Below, are some of the important national sponsored events that took place on Carlyle Lake:
U.S. Yacht Racing Union (Championship of Champions 1976 & 1993)
U.S. Olympic Sailing Teams (U.S. Olympic Festival 1994)
Carlyle Lake Resources
Illinois Department of Natural Resource (DNR)
US Army Corps of Engineers Information line 618-594-4637
Call this number (618-594-4637), before you go out on the lake to get the latest water levels, release rate, lake crest, inflow into lake, ramp closures, weather forecast with winds for today and tomorrow, and much more. This recording is updated daily with information about Carlyle Lake.
Play And Stay Carlyle - This is Carlyle's city web site. Find out the latest Carlyle events and everything Carlyle has to offer. Carlyle's web site has information about lodging, fishing, hunting, boating, camping, events, news, history and much more! This is a very nice site with lots of great information.
http://www.playandstaycarlyle.com/
Carlyle Lake - This web site is a guide to Carlyle Lake. Here you can get fishing reports, maps, fishing guides, fishing jokes, camping, boating, hunting, park, lodging information and much more!
IFishIllinois.org offers weekly fishing reports and all you need to know about fishing. Offering fishing tips for the different kinds of fish, fishing awards, family fishing hotspots, fisheries corner, fishing programs, fish science and much more!
Harbor Light Bay Resources
Go to the Harbor Light resources page to get Harbor LIght Bay resources for utilities, septic, and more.