McArthur Lake (Fort Bragg)

McArthur Lake is at 35.1833°N 79.2576°W / 35.1833; -79.2576 in Hoke County, North Carolina. It is owned by Fort Bragg. It was formed in 1935 by construction of Mcarthur Lake Dam. This is an earth dam with a length of 1,137 feet (347 m). The reservoir capacity is 288 acre feet (355,000 m³). Normal storage is 252 acre feet (311,000 m³).[1] It has a length of 1,137 feet (347 m), covers 29 acres (12 ha) and has an average depth of about 10 feet (3.0 m).[2]

Fort Bragg is on the divide between Little River, which forms the northern boundary of the reservation, and Rockfish Creek 8 to 10 miles (13 to 16 km) south of the reservation.[3] McArthur Lake is in the northern watershed in the west of the reservation.[4] As of 2007 Fort Bragg still owned and operated its water distribution system, although there were plans for it to be privatized. The water was drawn from Little River.[5] McKellars Lake and McArthur Lake provided storage for water that could be released into the Little River if needed. This had never actually been required.[5]

The lake is used for recreation.[1] As with all Fort Bragg lakes apart from Smith Lake, it is off limits to swimming, wind surfing, water skiing and use of personal watercraft such as jet skis.[6] There is a ramp for launching boats.[2] There is no boating motor size restriction.[6] The lake is classed as "managed" but not "intensively managed". The water is not treated by practices such as liming and fertilizing. The fish population is respectable and is usually sustained naturally without any supplementary stocking.[7] Fish include largemouth bass, bluegill, redear sunfish, warmouth, flier, pickerel and bullhead catfish.[2]