This 525-acre park offers 15 miles of forested trails, a disc golf course, sheltered picnic areas, fishing, swimming and boating, as well as one of Albemarle County’s most reliable populations of Red-headed Woodpeckers. The habitat consists of predominantly oak-hickory, oak-pine, and oak-heath forests on hilly upland terrain. The aforementioned Red-headed Woodpeckers are particularly fond of an area of burned woods on the Red Trail, just northwest of the smaller of the two large coves on the west side of the lake. Worm-eating Warblers are abundant in the breeding season in mountain laurel thickets, and Acadian Flycatchers, Pine Warblers, Louisiana Waterthrushes, and both tanagers are also frequent. Despite its fairly substantial size (45 acres), the lake does not seem to attract much waterfowl, though a few species like Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Gadwall, Lesser Scaup, and Horned Grebe have been recorded here. Notable records for the location are few, with a Laughing Gull in October 2018 being the most interesting by far. The lake and small spring-fed streams also host an unusually large variety of dragonfly and damselfly species sure to excite the naturalist and photographer.
eBird Hotspot: Walnut Creek Park
—Drew Chaney, February 2023