I was mildly annoyed at the seemingly redundant name of “Water Dog Lake Park” that did not roll off the tongue until I did some research for this post. I learned from the City of Belmont that water dog refers to salamanders. A quick Google search and Wikipedia seem to indicate that water dog can also refer to certain species of dogs or even a giant otter. I didn’t see any salamanders, otters, or many dogs, so who knows what this park is actually named after.
We parked on Lyall Way and started on the Lake Road Trail. We visited on a Wednesday evening and there were quite a few hikers, runners, bikers, and dog walkers.
We saw the houses above and below the canyon as we hiked. I am glad we came on a cloudy and cool day because there are not enough trees to block the sun and heat on a normal summer day.
The dirt trail is uneven at places but mainly clean from leaves or dog poops.
To access the lake, we followed the sign “To Berry Trail.”
There is a dock where some high school students were picnicking. We saw two ducks swimming near the dock but did not spot any other creatures around.
View facing the lake.
View with the lake behind you.
We continued on to the Water Dog Lake Loop Trail. The fire roads here are narrow and there are several bridges to cross.
The view of the lake is mainly obscured by bushes and trees on the loop.
Overall a pleasant, easy, and short hike despite a few steep areas. You do have to be aware of bikers speeding down the narrow fire roads as we saw a biker almost collided into a middle-aged couple.
Photos taken August 2020.