Canoeing at Whipple Dam State Park

Located near State College, Pennsylvania, this 256-acre Whipple Dam State Park is one of Pennsylvania’s smallest state parks but also one of the most unique state parks in the way it was constructed and maintained. The lake is the perfect place to indulge in a swim, wildlife watch, picnic or hike and there are miles of dirt roads for bike riding. Because of it’s location close to State College, I wouldn’t exactly call it a quiet park, but being located so close to the beautiful Rothrock State Forest, you will certainly enjoy what the park has to offer in it’s beautiful natural appearance as it is constructed according to the National Park guideline use of native materials. You’ll certainly understand this as you visit the park because it has a very natural appearance to the landscape.  

Although it’s not the kind of state park you can spend an entire day of paddling it is a nice park to spend a few hours paddling a canoe or kayak or fishing on the lake. Also because the lake is so small you are close to the shores during most of your paddle, making it a great lake  for taking nature photos from your canoe or kayak.

The fishing is decent with Whipple Lake and Laurel Run stocked with trout by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission in the spring and winter months. A wildlife photographer may encounter white-tailed deer, black bear, wild turkey, waterfowl and many other species of wildlife. Osprey, great blue heron and Canada goose visit the lake. On quiet evenings, muskrat and beaver may be seen on the water.

Purchased from the Iroquois Confederation on July 6, 1754. The land was part of the Monroe Iron Works, where charcoal was produced for the areas heavy dependency on the iron furnaces.