November 1 to Ice-In (Fall Drawdown Period)
On or about November 1, the four spillway gates will be opened to draw the lake down to its natural water level (a sill at the natural outlet of the lake limits the drawdown of the lake to a maximum of about 3 1/2 feet). The drawdown will occur as gradually and consistently as possible, with the goal of being completed by ice-in.

Ice-In to April 15 (Winter Period)
After the fall drawdown has been completed, the spillway gates will be left open and clear of the water. This will ensure the gates do not freeze in place during the winter and will preserve the flood control capacity of the lake through the winter months and into the spring run-off season. The lake will rise above and fall back to its natural level during this period as a result of rainfall and snow melt.

April 15 to May 15 (Spring Re-fill Period, Phase I)
On or about April 15, two of the four spillway gates will be closed. On or about May 1, the remaining two spillway gates will be closed to start re-filling the lake to an interim target level at Mark 19 on the staff guage at the dam (located immediately upstream of the spillway gates on the Route 140 side of the dam, with numbered 3-inch wide bands or marks). Until May 15, gates will be opened as necessary to keep the water level from staying above the interim target level. This will ensure that some storage capacity remains in the lake to handle substantial rains.

May 15 to Jun 1 (Spring Re-fill Period, Phase II)
On or about May 15, and when the threat of substantial flooding appears to be passed, all four spillway gates will be closed to re-fill the lake to its final target level at the bottom of Mark 27 on the staff guage at the dam. The final target level corresponds to the point 5 inches below the top of the old spillway gates and 11 inches below the top of the rebuilt spillway gates.

June 1 to November 1 (Summer/Fall Period)
Between June 1 and November 1, the water level of the lake will be managed to be as close as possible to, without exceeding, the final target level at the bottom of Mark 27 on the staff guage next to the dam. The timbers on top of the sluice gate (which controls flows through the old powerhouse pit) will be removed so that the top of this gate is no higher than the final target level. This will allow some degree of self-regulation of water levels at the target level. Whenever heavy rains are expected or the lake is rising above the target level, one or more gates will be opened as much as necessary to bring the lake back down to the target level as quickly as possible.

During dry years, the lake will unavoidably drop below the target level due to evaporation, leakage through the dam, and water level withdrawals by the Canton Water District.