Deer Lake Restoration

Project Background

Deer Lake is located in the northern part of Shell Ridge. It was originally built as a stock impoundment by a local rancher named Ames, and is still called Ames Pond by some local residents. The dam is located at the north end of Deer Lake, which has a south arm and an east arm. Four drainages flow into Deer Lake, from the northwest, southwest, southeast and east southeast. The drainages are mostly outside the fenced area.

In 1976, the City of Walnut Creek obtained a Land and Water Conservation Fund grant to purchase the Ames property. Sometime after its acquisition by the City, Ranger Ron White planted a sycamore tree on a knoll above the lake on the south side and put some old tires into the lake as bass habitat. As of 2010, the sycamore is still there, but the tires were removed in 2009. There are several stands of native milkweed around the lake.

In 1986, after the dam was damaged by flooding early in the year, the City spent nearly $300,000 to repair the dam.

Restoration Activities at Deer Lake

Fenced in restoration area at Deer Lake featuring a thriving elderberry

The Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation first planted trees at Deer Lake in 2000-2002. As of 2010, there are three large (15’) oak trees growing inside the fenced area, and several smaller oak trees (up to 6’) that are probably also from these planting efforts (the Foundation’s Oak Habitat Restoration Project).

In 2008 and 2009, to improve the habitat in the drainages leading into Deer Lake and at the suggestion of Ranger Bylin, the Foundation installed 23 cattle enclosures in the southest and southwest drainages and planted acorns in them.

In 2010, the Foundation planted both acorns and buckeyes principally on the hill between the south and east arms, but also planted some acorns on the east and north sides of Deer Lake. There was a very good success rate for the buckeyes, but a much lower rate of success for the acorns. This was only the second time the Foundation has planted buckeyes, so the success rate was really good news. In 2010, the Foundation removed a patch of Italian thistle from the south arm.

Foundation volunteers planted native grasses in this area in January 2011, but the weather turned cold and dry for 5 weeks, so only a few survived. Later in 2011, our volunteers moved some fencing that had been at Acalanes Ridge Open Space, and used it to protect an elderberry from cattle grazing.

For Walnut Creek’s first ever Community Service Day, a group of volunteers removed Italian thistle from a large area near the kiosk and removed grasses from around the existing plantings and around the sites to be planted in the winter. The volunteers also removed about 6” of soil from a portion of the small depression within the fenced area in order to provide some water later in the year as well as to improve the habitat for growing willows in this area.

Restoration activities continue at Deer Lake, with plantings in early 2013 of native grass, buckeyes, and toyons propagated at the Foundation’s nursery. Restoration activities at Deer Lake have been spearheaded by Bob Simmons, who also put together the information for this account.

Volunteers at Deer Lake during Walnut Creek Community Service Day 2011