Recreation in and around Lake Lure

Recreational Opportunities around Lake Lure

The Town of Lake Lure is a great location for all kinds of recreation, including swimming, golfing, hiking, bird watching, bicycling, and rock climbing. You can enjoy a wide variety of water activities, ranging from canoeing and fishing to pleasure boating and water skiing. The lake is the number one attraction, and the reason so many families visit Lake Lure year after year. Visitors come to enjoy the beach area and mountain range, including Chimney Rock. Below you'll find a list of local attractions and destinations, followed by links to additional resources in the Western North Carolina area.

With 27 miles of shoreline, Lake Lure is a small man-made lake surrounded by mountain vistas at every turn, making it as much of a visual delight as it is a great choice for lake-based recreation.

Seasonal opportunities include boating, sailing, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, tubing, wakeboarding, water skiing, and kneeboarding.

There are several options available for access to the lake. You can purchase a daily, weekly, monthly, or annual boat permit through the Town of Lake Lure. Launches for boats, kayaks, and canoes are located at Washburn Marina and behind the ABC Liquor Store on Memorial Highway. Both of these are within walking distance of local restaurants and Lake Lure Beach, and Water Park. Rumbling Bald Resort, at the north end of the lake, provides permitted access at their marina for property owners or visitors who are vacationing there.

Lake Lure is a deep, clear lake with a maximum depth of 104 feet. Both warm and cold-water species of fish inhabit Lake Lure, such as the largemouth and smallmouth bass, trout, bream/bluegills, crappie, white bass, carp, and several species of catfish.

In summer months, gradient layers of progressively colder waters form in the lake but turn over to a uniform temperature in the winter. An abundance of wildlife enjoys the lake area as much as humans. Wildlife most often seen include whitetail deer, beavers, bobcats, foxes, groundhogs, raccoons, turtles, wild turkeys, Canada geese, ducks, coots, shorebirds, and several species of birds of prey such as bald eagles, ospreys, hawks, and Peregrine falcons. A multitude of songbirds and migratory birds serve to make the lake a perfect spot for our many birding enthusiasts.