Woodcock Creek Lake

Woodcock Creek Lake is a fun place for boating, picnicking, hiking, running, and mountain biking.  While most of it is pretty straightforward, I would like to showcase some of the hidden highlights in this post. 

On the north side of the lake there is a large culvert under Route 198.  In the summer when the water is at its normal level, it is possible to paddle a small boat halfway through the tunnel.  Due to the slope of the tunnel, it is not possible to navigate all the way through.  The upper end of the tunnel can be reached by hiking down on a nature trail from a parking lot on the north side of Route 198.   

In the fall when water levels are lower, there is a rocky and at times muddy shoreline which can greatly aid  exploration.

The spillway is south of the dam.  A short access road leads from the south end of the dam to a viewpoint. 

This is the view looking east from the spillway viewpoint.  If the reservoir ever reached maximum capacity a lot of trees would be underwater. 

The dam itself is almost a mile long and has a paved road on the top.  It can be accessed via a parking lot on Route 198.  There is also a trail that goes from the boat launch parking lot at Woodcock Park to the south end of the dam.  From Stainbrook Park at the base of the dam there are trails that reach both the northern and southern ends of the dam, or else you can just walk straight up it in the middle!

 
North of Route 198 across from the dam there is a nature trail that takes you down into a small canyon.  There used to be bridges across the creek in a couple places but they have been washed out. 

Once you take the nature trail down to the creek, hike downstream and you will soon reach the tunnel under Route 198 which I described previously.