The Spell of White Rock

My lady is the lake

Parks are an interesting thing. On the one hand, you have Yellowstone or Yosemite, gigantic sprawls that require a car, a compass and maybe even some bear evasion tactics. Then municipally, you have one-square block parks like Tietz Park in East Dallas. These parks, you navigate in 1 minute -- they're more like greenbelt landscaping. But then there is the large urban retreat -- urban enough for close access, but big enough to lose yourself in it a bit. Think of Manhattan's Central Park or Boston Common in Boston. There is no camping, there are no park rangers. These parks just have sprawling, landscaped areas with towering trees -- with college students reading, children at play, musicians and the occasional hot dog vendor.

Our fair Dallas is lacking in many 'big city' draws. We don't have a Chinatown, a theater district or a presentable river front. We don't have historic palaces or museums, and we don't have anything like the St. Louis Arch or the Golden Gate Bridge. We do have one thing that is world class and beautiful in its own right, and that attraction is White Rock Lake -- situated in East Dallas near the Lakewood neighborhood. White Rock is a fresh water lake that covers approximately 1015 acres, surrounded by lush, beautiful parkland, dotted with cottonwoods and oaks. It was constructed in 1911 as a water source for Dallas but that utilitarian function was overtaken by Lake Lewisville a few decades later. White Rock now is refuge to many wildlife species, and a recreation center for the human species. It features:

- Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
- A 9.33 mile hike and bike trail
- Fishing piers for catfish, sunfish and bass fishing
- Bath House Cultural Center
- Audubon-designated bird watching areas & wetlands
- Corinthian Sailing Club for sail boats
- Pump Station (now a historical site), spillway
- Dog Park (divided in two areas, one for small dogs, one for large dogs)
- 3 Beautiful club houses available to rent for parties and weddings



Blue heron on spillway, bicyclers on dam

To other lovers of the lake I'm probably leaving something out. During the 1930's, the Works Progress Administration further enhanced the park's infrastructure with beautiful stone gazebos and restroom facilities. The latest addition is fantastic; in the last month they opened the new pedestrian bridge and north shore trail near Mockingbird Lane. The bridge is a simple modern-style arch, with lamps for illumination. It's built of steel, on concrete piers -- not likely to fall victim to termites or wood rot. Yesterday, the bridge was overrun with bicyclers and walkers like me. The north shore trail gives you a new view of an already beautiful place.


New pedestrian bridge

White Rock has much lore around it. German prisoners of war were housed near it at one point; there is supposedly a ghost known as 'the Lady of the Lake' that haunts it. I don't need any lore to love this lake. Affluent neighborhoods have developed around the lake, and lake proximity is a selling point. Nobody has to sell me. If you have a kayak, bicycle, sail boat or feet, White Rock beckons. On a day of 72 degree, clear-sky perfection, White Rock is a must -- and a solid point of pride for Big D.