About Dalhousie Lake
Our clean and beautiful Dalhousie Lake is located in the Township of Lanark Highlands just North of the quaint little hamlet of McDonald's Corners. The Dalhousie Lake watershed area is 1,288 square kilometers that includes the Mississippi River at the inlet of the lake along with seven smaller creeks. The Mississippi River watershed encompasses 4,450 square kilometers starting at the Mazinaw Lake dam through several small lakes including Dalhousie Lake and along the Mississippi River to the outlet at the Ottawa River. The lake is approximately five kilometers long and one kilometer wide and has a surface area of 603.5 ha. The 13.5 kilometers of shoreline provides a variety of natural scenic elements including cliffs, headlands and rock outcrops. The maximum depth is 16.8 meters and the mean depth is 5.2 meters. In the summer, water temperatures usually range from 22 to 23 degrees Celsius at the surface to less that 10 degrees Celsius at the bottom. Access to the Lake is via Lanark County Roads 8 and 12 as well as several roads maintained by the Lanark Highlands Township. Public boat launches are situated at the east end of the lake beside Sylvania Lodge and at the west end of the lake at Centennial Park. If you are looking for a good catch, fishing of Pickerel, Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike can be had on any given day .
For detailed information on current lake conditions including lake levels, water quality and advisories - please click on "Conditions" button (top right corner)
Dalhousie Lake,as part of the Mississippi River watershed including some 11 dams above the Lake, is subject to annual fluctuations in the lake level. Factors affecting the water level are snow pack melt, rain and overall water levels above the Lake. Typically, Lake levels peak in late April and may fluctuate by approximately .5 metres (~1-2 feet) in June/July. Water levels normally stabilize through the latter part of the summer months. The water quality on Dalhousie Lake is tested twice per year by the Dalhousie Lake Association for bacteria (e-coli) and phosphorus consistently shows excellent overall quality well which is within applicable standards and guidelines. The Leeds, Grenville and Lanark Health Unit also undertakes weekly testing in the beach area of Dalhousie Lake located near Centennial Park.