New Jersey Kayaking

Mercer Lake is actually a big gravel pit that was dug out for highway fill. In 1975, someone got the bright idea of damming it off, and it turned into one of the nicest lakes in the state. The lake fills from a creek to the east, and the water is very clean. Mercer county turned the whole area into a beautiful park, great for all sorts of other activities as well.

The launch at the south shore is a concrete boat ramp. I think it is free, I have never had to pay. Directly across is another launch site on the north shore. You could call this a ‘two-day’ lake – from either of these central locations you can explore east or west – one side is enough of a paddle for me. To the east, you can go up the creek, but not very far, as it is blocked by fallen trees. To the west, you can go to the dam.

Boat traffic is mostly sailboats, and the Olympic crew team, which has their main training facility here. They have courses marked out with buoys, and at any time there may be several shells out rowing around, so stay out of their way. The middle of the big lake isn’t that interesting anyway.