On the Water at Deep Creek Lake
Deep Creek Lake State Park is the public way onto the lake, with a boat ramp, a kayak launch and swimming beaches. Around the lake you can rent a kayak or paddleboard by the hour, take a guided pontoon tour or go out with a fishing guide. On the Youghiogheny, the Lower Yough runs guided Class III/IV rafting from April to October, with no experience needed.
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The water is almost entirely private
Deep Creek Lake has 69 miles of shoreline, and almost all of it is private waterfront. If you’re staying somewhere without a dock, put in at Deep Creek Lake State Park.
Deep Creek Lake State Park
The park is on the lake’s northeast shore, below Meadow Mountain, off Glendale Road. It has a four-vehicle boat ramp with a pump-out station and an ADA fishing pier, a separate soft launch for kayaks and canoes at the main beach parking lot, and two sandy swimming beaches. The state parks charge a day-use fee year-round.
Getting a boat under you
Adventure Outpost, at the state park beach, rents kayaks, paddleboards and tubes by the hour. Fun Time Watersports, in Oakland, rents jet skis, boats and kayaks. Carefree Boat Club, in McHenry, is a membership club. If neither of you wants to drive, Wisp’s guided pontoon tours and Fun Time Watersports’ captains put someone else at the wheel.
Whitewater on the Yough
The Youghiogheny runs across the state line at Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania. The Middle Yough is a gentle Class I/II run for first-timers. The Lower Yough steps up to Class III/IV, guided, and needs no experience. It runs from April through October.
Swimming and fishing
Swimming is allowed at the state park’s two beaches while the swim lines are in. Maryland’s Healthy Beaches program monitors them for bacteria and posts any advisory. Cold-water shock is a risk in May and October.
The park’s Ranger Station sells fishing licenses. Rifle & Reel Adventures guides bass trips, and Lazy Minnow, on Garrett Highway, sells bait and tackle.
If it is not a water day
Wisp’s scenic chairlift carries you up the mountain for a view over the lake from spring through late October, and Lodestone, its 18-hole golf course, plays from spring into fall.
Getting on the water
Public access
The public boat launch in the state park. There's ADA parking, restrooms, a pump-out station and an ADA-accessible fishing pier. The park charges a day-use fee, and its overnight slips are for campers.
- For couples
- Dog friendly
A separate launch for kayaks and canoes at the main beach parking lot, with a gentle slope into the water. Bring your own boat and carry it straight in.
- For couples
- Dog friendly
Two sandy swimming beaches, open while the swim lines are in for the season. The main beach has a shower house and changing rooms. Dogs aren't allowed on the beaches from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day. You can fish from the shore around the rest of the park, except at the ranger docks and inside the swim area.
- For couples
Everywhere else on the shoreline
The State of Maryland owns the lakebed and a buffer strip around the whole shore, and almost all of that strip sits behind private waterfront homes. There's no general right to walk down to the water between two houses. "The Cove," which turns up in searches, is a private community beach.
- For couples
Renting something
A rental stand right at the state park beach, run in partnership with Wisp. Kayaks, paddleboards, tubes and beach chairs rent by the hour, with no trailer or membership needed. Park entry is a separate fee.
- For couples
Jet skis, boats and kayaks to rent in Oakland, at the south end of the lake, plus guided tours. You can try a few ways onto the water in one visit.
- For couples
A membership boat club at 1077 Deep Creek Drive in McHenry. Members book from a fleet of 18- to 28-foot boats up to six months ahead, with up to four bookings out at once. It suits people who return to Deep Creek often.
- For couples
Being taken out
Summer pontoon tours from the Discovery Center Dock, with a guide at the wheel. There's an hour-and-a-half tour, and shorter one-hour tours go out several times a day. You can also book a private boat and have it to yourselves.
- For couples
Book a pontoon from Fun Time Watersports and add a captain by the hour, so neither of you has to drive the boat.
- For couples
A local bass-fishing guide service. To fish on your own you'll need a Maryland license, sold at the state park's Ranger Station. The lake holds trout, largemouth and smallmouth bass, walleye, yellow perch and northern pike.
- For couples
A guide based in Friendsville, running kayak tours on the lake in summer and snowshoe tours once winter sets in. Book ahead.
- For couples
Whitewater
A beginner trip on Class I/II water out of Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania. It covers 9 miles in four to six hours, from May through September. Book this one if neither of you has rafted before.
- For couples
Class III/IV, guided, with no experience needed. It runs April through October, so early May and late September are as good for it as July. The Upper Yough, upstream, is Class IV/V and a run for experienced rafters.
- For couples
A rafting outfitter in Friendsville, on the Maryland side of the state line, running trips graded from easy to extreme.
- For couples
A day off the water
Runs spring through late October and goes up the mountain for a view over the lake without the climb.
- For couples
- Works midweek
Wisp's 18-hole course, open from spring into fall. You can rent clubs there.
- For couples
Common questions
- Where can you swim at Deep Creek Lake?
- At the two sandy beaches at Deep Creek Lake State Park, while the swim lines are in for the season. The main beach has a shower house and changing rooms, and the park charges a day-use fee.
- Where can you launch a kayak at Deep Creek Lake?
- At the soft launch by the main beach parking lot at Deep Creek Lake State Park, built for kayaks and canoes. Carry your boat straight in down the gentle slope.
- Do you need a boating license in Maryland?
- Maryland requires a boating safety certificate for anyone born on or after July 1, 1972 who operates a motorized boat. Check DNR's current rules at dnr.maryland.gov before you rent or launch anything with a motor.
- What does it cost to rent a boat or kayak at Deep Creek Lake?
- Rentals are priced by the hour or by the trip, and each operator lists its current rates on its own site. Adventure Outpost, the rental stand at the state park beach, rents kayaks, paddleboards and tubes by the hour. Wisp sells tickets for its guided pontoon tours, and you can book a private boat. Fun Time Watersports in Oakland adds a captain to a pontoon booking by the hour, and Carefree Boat Club in McHenry is a membership club.
- Can you raft the Youghiogheny with no experience?
- Yes, on two stretches. The Lower Yough is Class III/IV and guided, with no experience needed, from April through October. The Middle Yough is gentler, Class I/II, from May through September. The Upper Yough is Class IV/V and for experienced rafters.
- Is The Cove a public beach at Deep Creek Lake?
- No. The Cove is a private community beach. The public beaches on the lake are the two at Deep Creek Lake State Park.
Where to stay
A day on the lake, an evening in the woods together.
Nightwood is a luxury cabin, thoughtfully designed for couples, on two wooded acres at the north end of the lake. After a day on the water, the hot tub beneath the deck and the loft above a wall of windows are waiting in the trees. Your dog stays free.
See Nightwood