By EMILY D. COOK / Community Columnist

Oak Mountain State Park has so many trails to offer that you might have a hard time choosing which one you want to go on, so let’s take a look at one of our trails – the Lake Trail.

The Lake Trail is one of the newest trails that we have. It is also one of the prettiest.

It was added a couple of years ago through the hard work of volunteers.

The Lake Trail is a multi-use trail – it can be used by both hikers and bicycle riders.

The Lake Trail starts in two locations along Terrace Drive. You can enter the trail just past the Marina or at the South Trailhead.

The Lake Trail is approximately 2 1/4 miles long of gently rolling terrain.

It can connect you to Rattlesnake Ridge, a trail for mountain bikers.

The Lake Trail does not connect back to itself; instead you must turn around and go back the way you came or you can hop onto the road and walk it back to your starting point.

Starting near the Marina, you head back toward the main road and there are a few locations that you can enter or exit from (if you decide not to do the whole trail). Starting from the South Trailhead, you enter the trail directly off the picnic area road.

The Lake Trail follows a path around the roughly 75-acre Double Oak Lake.

A favorite resting point is 1 mile in from the Marina entrance and it is the Dam.

You can sit here and enjoy the scenic view of the lake.

On the Lake Trail, you might find plants such as the Resurrection Fern, Longleaf Pine, Flowering Dogwood and Blueberries (if they haven’t been eaten by the animals).

There is abundant wildlife that you might see if the temperature and timing is right. You can find Gray Squirrels, Wood Ducks (we have several nesting boxes for them around the lake), Eastern Phoebes and more.

Occasionally but not too often you may run into a visitor of the legless variety. Remember to enjoy the scenery and do no harm.

We hope that you enjoy the Lake Trail!