Beaver Creek Nature Trails - Waurika Lake
People sometimes ask how I find locations for hiking. One of the methods I use for finding trails is the Explore tool on the AllTrails app and website. This tool provides a searchable map that shows the locations of hiking trails and provides links to more information. While using the Explore tool, I found the Beaver Creek Nature Trails at Waurika Lake.
The Beaver Creek Nature Trails are a series of interconnected loop trails that sit behind the Waurika Lake dam in Moneka Park. The trails are color coded - Green, Red, Orange, and Blue. The loops range in length from .8 to 1.3 miles. You can hike any combination of loops to achieve your desired distance. A hike on the outer perimeter of the trail system yields 4 miles in distance.
Waurika Lake and Moneka Park are a Corps of Engineers project. You can access this trail system at three locations - Moneka North, Moneka South, and the Project Office. There is no fee to access the trails. If you desire to camp, inexpensive campsites with water and electricity are available at Moneka North.
At each of the trailheads is an archway and a map of the trail system. Taking a picture of the map will come in handy to aid with navigation on the trails.
Guide posts are found along the trails. These posts have a colored stripe and a number. The colored stripe identifies which trail you are on. The number identifies your exact location on the trail map.
The Beaver Creek Nature Trails are nothing spectacular. However, the well maintained trails and variety of scenery made for a pleasant outdoor experience. Would I go out of my way to hike here? Probably not, but if you live nearby or plan to camp at Waurika Lake, these trails are worth your while.
More information:
.jpg)
