Lake Casitas

Lake Casitas is an man-made lake in the Los Padres National Forest of Ventura County, California, created by the construction of Casitas Dam on Coyote Creek, two miles (3 km) before it joins the Ventura River. Santa Ana Creek and North Fork Coyote Creek also flow into the lake. The dam was constructed of earth-fill and was completed in 1959. It is 279 ft (85 m) and was built by the United States Bureau of Reclamation. The lake has a capacity of 254,000 acre·ft (313,000,000 m3). The dam was built as part of the Ventura River Project. The project provides drinking water and water for irrigation. A secondary benefit is flood control. In the centre of Lake Casitas is 2 km Main Island, whose peak rises more than 500 feet (150 m) from the lake surface.

Human contact with the water is prohibited since it is used for drinking water, but fishing, boating and camping are permitted. During the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Lake Casitas hosted the canoeing and rowing events. The lake was used as the site for filming the scenes of 'Camp Greenlake' in the 19th century. The lake featured in the 2003 film Holes.