Hidden Dam is an earthen dam on the Fresno River in Madera County, California. It creates a reservoir known as Hensley Lake.
The dam was constructed in by the Perini Corporation as part of an expansive United States Army Corps of Engineers project for flood control, irrigation storage, and recreation. The dam is tall, is long at its crest, and is the only major storage dam of the Fresno River.
The reservoir it creates, Hensley Lake, has a water surface of , over of shoreline, and has a maximum storage capacity of . In 1978 the lake was opened to day-use recreation, including water skiing, fishing, swimming, horseback riding, mountain biking, and hiking. The Hidden View Campground offers single and group camping year-round.
The lake is named for local settler and cattle rancher John Jackson Hensley.The Valley's Legends & Legacies III, by Catherine Morison Rehart, page 99
Eastman Lake, another Corps of Engineers lake, is located to the northwest.
See also List of dams and reservoirs in California List of lakes in California
References
External links U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Hensley Lake Recreation at Hensley Lake (Recreation.gov)