Lacamas Lake Drawdown Scheduled to Begin Sept. 8

Officials with the City of Camas Public Works department have announced that the annual drawdown of Lacamas Lake and Round Lake is scheduled to begin earlier this year, with a start date of Sept. 8.

Beginning at 8 a.m., Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, the City will reduce the total level of the lakes by approximately six feet, in order to achieve the level needed to facilitate dam inspections and make repairs. The City will also be replacing parts of the dam in order to update and improve it, which is why more time is required.

As part of the work on the dam, the City will need significant trail closures around Round Lake, in addition to the current closures put in place by Clark County to repair a bridge on the Lacamas Creek Trail. Visitors should be aware and adhere to closure signs.

The drawdown should take a few days, with the minimum level being reached by the approximate date of Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. 

Once inspections and repairs have taken place, the process to refill the lakes to normal levels is tentatively scheduled to begin Nov. 2.  Officials expect this process to take several weeks, depending on rainfall volumes.