Lake Oroville Update - October 31, 2025

One Year Later: How California is Combating Golden Mussels

It's been a year since golden mussels were first discovered in California-and the state's response has been swift and strategic. In partnership with California State Parks and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), the Department of Water Resources (DWR) is taking decisive action to combat the spread of this invasive species and safeguard California's vital water infrastructure.

Golden mussels pose a serious threat to the State Water Project (SWP), which delivers water to 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. To protect this critical infrastructure, DWR has launched a series of proactive measures to minimize the mussels' impact on the water conveyance system. Watch this video to learn how DWR and its partners are tackling this challenge head-on.

Oroville Recreation Advisory Committee

The Oroville Recreation Advisory Committee (ORAC) will hold a meeting on Friday, Nov. 7 at 10 a.m. at the Oroville Southside Community Center located at 2959 Lower Wyandotte Road, Oroville, CA, 95966.

ORAC was established by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to review and provide recreation plan recommendations for Oroville Facilities owned by DWR. The 13-member committee is made up of representatives from state and local government, recreation groups, and business and community organizations.

Portion of the Thermalito Afterbay Dam Crest Remains Closed

DWR continues work on a paving and sealing project to rehabilitate several locations owned and maintained by the department that are heavily used by maintenance staff and members of the public. While improvements in most public areas have been completed, portions of the Thermalito Afterbay Dam Crest Road remain closed for ongoing pavement work. In addition, the main Feather River Fish Hatchery facility will be temporarily closed this weekend. Vintage Paving Company, Inc. of Winters, Calif. is the contractor for the project.

Upcoming construction work will require closures to the following public areas and roads:

• Aug. 18 - Nov. 30: Afterbay Dam Crest Road/Brad Freeman Trail south of State Route 162 to the East Hamilton Road Trail Access
• Nov. 1-2: The main Feather River Fish Hatchery facility will be closed to the public. The lower parking lot will remain open for public access to the fish viewing window and fish barrier dam viewing platform.

Additional locations for future paving and sealing work include:

• Thermalito Diversion Dam Powerplant

• Oroville Field Division Operations and Maintenance Center at Glen Drive

DWR will provide more details about scheduled work and potential public access impacts in future newsletters. Work schedules are subject to change based on weather and the availability of equipment and materials.

Golden Mussel Inspection Program

DWR is reminding the public that its mussel inspection/decontamination facility will close daily at 4:30 p.m. starting Monday, Nov. 3. In addition, boat ramps at Lake Oroville are no longer open 24/7. Watercraft must be out of the water by ramp closing time or they will be locked into the facility overnight. Please plan ahead. More details about DWR's mussel inspection program are available at water.ca.gov/mussels.

Watercraft Inspection Location/Decontamination Services

North Thermalito Forebay at Garden Drive and HWY 70 in Oroville

Hours of operation: Daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Starting Nov. 3: Daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Sealed Vessel Launching

Lake Oroville

Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

• Spillway

Ramp hours: Monday-Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Friday-Sunday 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

• Bidwell Canyon

Ramp hours: Monday-Thursday 5 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Friday-Sunday 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.

• Lime Saddle

Ramp hours: Daily from 5 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

• Loafer Creek/Loafer Point

Thermalito Afterbay

Ramp hours: Daily from 1.5 hours before sunrise to 1 hour after sunset

• Monument Hill

Thermalito Forebay

Ramp Hours: Daily from 8 a.m. to sunset

• North Forebay (Non-motorized vessels only)

Oroville Recreation

DWR, State Parks, and CDFW maintain over 92 miles of trails in the Oroville area. An interactive map of recreation facilities, including open trails and their permitted uses (hike, bike, horse, multi), is available on DWR's Lake Oroville Recreation webpage. A paper trail map is available at various locations, including most entrance kiosks and the Lake Oroville Visitor Center.

Staffed by knowledgeable guides, the Lake Oroville Visitor Center features interpretive displays on Oroville Dam, area geology, wildlife and habitat, hydroelectric power, and cultural and historical artifacts. View videos in the theater about the construction of Oroville Dam, walk or hike along nearby trails, and visit the 47-foot-tall observation tower that provides unsurpassed panoramic views of surrounding areas. Free guided tours for school and community groups are available by reservation. Parking and admission to the Visitor Center are free.

Between Jan. 30 and April 20, high flows in the Feather River required the temporary removal of fish monitoring equipment resulting in lower spring-run estimates. Upstream migrating fish totals through the Feather River Fish Monitoring Station between Jan. 1 and Oct. 24, 2025 are:

• Spring-run Chinook salmon (April 16 through June 30): 17,712
• Fall-run Chinook salmon (July 1 through present): 35,045
• Steelhead: 886
• To see previous year data, visit CalFish.org.

Current Lake Operations

Lake Oroville is at 775 feet elevation and storage is approximately 1.84 million acre-feet (MAF), which is 54 percent of its total capacity and 102 percent of the historical average.

Feather River flows are at 650 cubic feet per second (cfs) through the City of Oroville with 1,800 cfs being released from the Thermalito Afterbay River Outlet (Outlet) for a total Feather River release of 2,450 cfs downstream. DWR continues to assess Feather River releases daily.

The public can track precipitation, snow, reservoir levels, and more at the California Data Exchange Center. The Lake Oroville gage station is identified as "ORO."

All data as of 11:59 p.m. on 10/30/2025.