16 April 2023
CHENEY, Kan. (KSNW) — The elongated drought has caused water levels at many state lakes to decrease. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shows water levels at Cheney Lake are 3.59 feet below normal.
“What we’ve heard is this East ramp is the only one that’s accessible for most of the boats. All the rest of them are too low or completely dried up,” said O’Brien’s Marina owner Kevin O’Brien.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Game Wardens took to Facebook to warn boaters of the dangers of boating in the low water. They say there might be “hazards below the water that were not a problem last year.”
Employees at O’Brien’s Marina have seen many boats being towed out of shallow areas by the jetty.
“You’ve got a lot of lower areas. You’ve got points that are historically shallow exposed. Usually, they’d be three to four feet underwater,” said O’Brien.
Along with boaters, fishermen are also having difficulties from the shore.
“Places where I used to catch fish, trophy fish, I can stand there on dry ground now,” said one fisherman James Hatcher. “They’re too deep. And you know, a boat, you can get out there on it, but not everybody has a boat.”
Hatcher has noticed the drought impacting many forms of wildlife. Last year, he was collecting bags of morel mushrooms from Kansas waters. But this year, “they’re just not there.”
The recent rainfall brings hope that water levels can be restored soon. But it will take a lot more before the lakes are full again.
“We need several more inches of rainfall to catch us up. If we can keep a consistent amount of moisture falling, then those water levels are going to go up. But at this point, it’s going to be here and there,” explains KSN Chief Meteorologist Lisa Teachman.