California’s Largest Reservoir in Napa County Releases Water: Video

A video captured Lake Berryessa water levels naturally spilling down the fascinating Morning Glory Spillway after the largest reservoir in Napa County hit full pool over the weekend.

After years of drought, several reservoirs in California reached concerningly low water levels in the summer of 2022. However, an abnormally wet winter last year alleviated much of the state’s drought and replenished the lakes. A similarly wet winter has brought a deluge of rain to the state this year, and it was enough rain for water levels at Lake Berryessa to reach full pool for the first time in four years.

The sight is one that many people travel to Napa County to witness. The Morning Glory Spillway, also known locally as the “Glory Hole,” is a 72-foot-diameter concrete funnel built into the lake that drops 200 feet into a narrow shaft. When the lake is full, the spillway sends water to the opposite side of Monticello Dam and into Putah Creek in a mesmerizing whirlpool.

The last time the lake was full enough for water to flow down the Morning Glory Spillway was in 2019.

The Morning Glory Spillway is famous for being the world’s largest drain hole.

“She’s full! Video captured over the weekend of the Lake Berryessa morning glory spillway,” the Bureau of Reclamation for California’s Great Basin posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.

Newsweek reached out to the Bureau of Reclamation via email for comment.

The stunning video came a week after the Bureau of Reclamation office noted that water was beginning to lap over the spillway’s edge.

“The Morning Glory Spillway at Lake Berryessa is in use! The spillway, which is 72-feet wide, drops water 200 ft. down a narrow shaft and flows into Putah Creek,” the office posted last week.

The overflow came after Napa Valley Register reported on the widespread concerns that there wouldn’t be enough rainfall in the wet season to bring the lake up the final stretch to spill over the Morning Glory Spillway.

“Everyone wants it,” Peter Kilkus, who runs Lake Berryessa News, said, according to the report. “That lake is essentially full…We’re all very happy that it’s full.”

Napa County Register reported that people were so desperate to watch the spill in February 2017, when the lake filled to within a few inches of the spillway, that they manually sent water splashing down the spillway using powerboats. The 2017 spill was the first in 11 years.

That won’t be the case this year, as water is already overflowing and attracting visitors who want to view the sight.

“If you’ve never been to the spillway at Lake Berryessa in Napa when it’s overflowing, it’s quite the spectacle,” one social media user posted on X with a video of water spilling down the spillway in 2019.