Bull Shoals Lake impounds the White River for the last time as water travels toward its mouth on the
Mississippi River. Bull Shoals is thus the lake farthest downstream in a chain of four artificial lakes that include (from upstream to downstream)
Beaver Lake,
Table Rock Lake and
Lake Taneycomo. The lake is controlled by the
Army Corps of Engineers and has the primary purpose of flood control. The level of the lake fluctuates regularly with a normal pool level elevation of above sea level, which is locally known as powerpool. However, the lake regularly fluctuates between an elevation of . The upper part of the lake, below nearby
Powersite Dam, is known as the "Pothole". The shoreline of the lake is undeveloped and protected by a buffer zone (locally called the "take line") owned, operated, managed, and controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers. The dam is designed for a maximum elevation of (top of the flood pool). Bull Shoals Lake covers with a shoreline at powerpool to more than with a shoreline at . The bottom of the lake consists of bedrock with very limited vegetation. The shoreline is heavily forested. == State park ==