Los Angeles County officials have banned swimming in summer getaway Castaic Lake, citing dangers such as unexpected drop-offs in a lake now less than half-full. Boaters there report new hazards, too.
"There are humps and underwater gravel bars coming up out of nowhere," said Steve Goodman, a 31-year-old aerospace engineer from Castaic, Calif., who fishes there regularly.
At Don Pedro Lake near Modesto, Calif., which stands at about 45% capacity, the Moccasin Point Marina closed its boat-servicing operations in June due to low water levels.
At Lake Mendocino north of San Francisco, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in July closed all four boat ramps and launches after the reservoir shrank to 35% of capacity. The number of visitors there so far this year is down 60% to 75% compared with the same time last year, said Mike Dillabough, chief of operations and readiness for the corps' San Francisco district. A spokeswoman at the California Department of Parks and Recreation said attendance figures at the state's inland waterways wouldn't be known until the summer season is over.