Mountain Creek Lake

Mountain Creek Lake (Mountain Creek Reservoir) is on Mountain Creek, U.S. Highway 80, and State highways 12 and 408, eight miles southwest of downtown Dallas in southwestern Dallas County (at 32°44' N, 96°57' W). The Dallas Naval Air Station (see NAVAL AIR STATION, DALLAS) is on the lake, and Mountain Creek Lake Park is on the southwestern and southeastern edges of the lake. Construction on Mountain Creek Dam, a rolled-earth structure, began in 1929 and was completed by early 1937, when water impoundment began. The lake was intended to provide water for cooling an electric generating plant. Mountain Creek drains an area of 295 square miles. The original permit for the project designated a capacity of 40,000 acre-feet, but by 1992 heavy siltation had reduced the conservation storage capacity to 22,840 acre-feet, with a conservation surface area of 2,710 acres. The spillway elevation is 458 feet above mean sea level. In 1986 fishing in Mountain Creek Lake was poor, but the lake was stocked with bass and drum. Other game fish included catfish and crappie. Camping was not allowed in the two city parks located by the lake. In 1992 the dam was operated by the Dallas Power and Light Company.