Chautauqua Lake

Swimming at Chautauqua Lake

On the map, Chautauqua Lake is centered near 42.1561, -79.3956. The deepest point on record is about 78 feet. It lies at roughly 1,309 feet of elevation.

Station 03013946, CHAUTAUQUA LAKE AT BEMUS POINT NY, publishes the water surface elevation used here. Over the record shown on the level page the gauge has moved between 1,306.85 ft and 1,309.01 ft (low on 2026-02-16, high on 2026-01-11). The last value stored here, 1,308.24 ft, is from 2026-09-09. A falling pool widens the beaches and shortens the ramps, so it is worth checking before you drive out.

Season dates vary by park; the operating agency publishes them each spring. Algae blooms are seasonal and local: look for posted signs at the ramp or park entrance. No public sensor reports water temperature at Chautauqua Lake, so the panel shows air temperature and wind.

If Chautauqua Lake is busy, the nearest alternatives here are Allegheny Reservoir (Pennsylvania, 30 mi), Tionesta Lake (Pennsylvania, 46 mi) and Woodcock Creek Lake (Pennsylvania, 48 mi). In all, 32 lakes in New York are covered here.

No named swimming beach is mapped at Chautauqua Lake in the federal and state datasets this guide reads. Access is through whatever the operating agency provides on the ground, so check with them first. County parks and private resorts sometimes provide access that federal datasets never record. Allegheny Reservoir, on Allegheny Reservoir, is the closest named beach in this guide, about 30 miles off.