Discrete depth profiles of water temperature, dissolved oxygen, oxidation-reduction potential, conductivity, specific conductance, and pH were collected with various handheld YSI water quality probes and discrete depth profiles of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) were collected with a LI-COR underwater light meter from 2013 to 2023 in five drinking water reservoirs in southwestern Virginia, USA. These reservoirs are: Beaverdam Reservoir (Vinton, Virginia), Carvins Cove Reservoir (Roanoke, Virginia), Falling Creek Reservoir (Vinton, Virginia), Gatewood Reservoir (Pulaski, Virginia), and Spring Hollow Reservoir (Salem, Virginia). Beaverdam, Carvins Cove, Falling Creek, and Spring Hollow Reservoirs are owned and operated by the Western Virginia Water Authority as primary or secondary drinking water sources for Roanoke, Virginia, and Gatewood Reservoir is a drinking water source for the Town of Pulaski, Virginia. All YSI and PAR depth profiles were collected on approximately 1-meter intervals. The data package consists of two datasets: 1) Secchi depth data; and 2) YSI and PAR profiles. The Secchi depths and YSI and PAR depth profiles were measured at the deepest site of each reservoir adjacent to the dam and other in-reservoir transects. YSI measurements were also collected at a gauged weir on the primary inflow tributary, other inflows and outflows at Falling Creek, inflows and outflows at Beaverdam, and inflows at Carvins Cove. In 2021, YSI profiles were also collected from a littoral site in Beaverdam. Data were collected approximately fortnightly in the spring months (March - May), weekly in the summer and early autumn (June - September), and monthly in the late autumn and winter (October - February) in Falling Creek and Beaverdam Reservoirs; data coverage in the other three reservoirs varies among years. Note there are some YSI profiles and Secchi observations that were measured at night during overnight sampling. All of these observations have the correct time associated with them. There was a major revision of this dataset from version 11, which includes correcting times of observations, including negative ORP values, and adding observations from an outflow at Falling Creek Reservoir.