My grandfather used to have a place (sort of a fish camp) on a lake somewhere near Weslaco. IIRC, it was actually an irrigation reservoir that was split into two parts by a FM/highway. The half my grandfather lived on was private leases & had a dam/levee that circled the lake and the houses/trailer homes were built on the dam/levee. The other half of the lake had public access, was smaller, and was a more traditional straight-line dam over the waterway with the reservoir backed up behind it. There was an orange orchard across the ditch that circled the dam/levee on my grandfather's side.

I remember him calling it "Delta Lake" but cannot seem to find such a lake anywhere near Weslaco. The "Donna Reservoirs" seem to have the right layout, but Google Earth doesn't seem to show any houses/trailers built on the dam/levee where my grandfather's place would have been.

Also remember a swimmer on the public side dying from a rare amoeba brain infection ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naegleria_fowleri ) in the late 70's or early 80's.

We spent a lot of time down there some 30-40 years ago. Good, good times and the best catfishing I've ever experienced. My grandfather died 20 years ago so he obviously can't tell me the location. Does any of this ring a bell, and if so could you please reply with a name to this reservoir?



[This message has been edited by agent-maroon (edited 7/22/2014 2:45p).]

Delta Lake is real. It's north of Weslaco on FM88 before Texas 186. I know it because I frequent that road heading out to Port Mansfield. It used to be a popular place when I was a kid, but it was shut down for a bit when a lady swimmer caught something from the lake.

And I remember Donna Lake being south. It may not be a real lake though

Thanks, that's it!

I had it backwards on the relative sizes of the lake halves and don't see any orange tree orchards, but that's clearly the Lake Delta I remember. Google shows it as Unit 1 & 2 on the map function without calling it Lake Delta, so I had assumed they were power plant cooling lakes and never zoomed in where it shows "Delta Lake Park" because I knew the lake I remembered didn't have power plants.

Thanks again!

Delta Lake is the holding area for the Hidalgo Willacy Irrigation District. Water is bad and no fishing allowed because someone dumped a bunch of old electric transformers into the lake years ago and the water is OK for irrigation but not to drink. PCBs.

PCB's? That makes me sad. Some of the best times I ever had were fishing out of that lake.

What's up with the Valley and their water quality? We caught some fish out of the Arroyo Colorado that smelled like gasoline after we fried them. Thank goodness we didn't eat them as a couple of months later they banned fishing there. Late 70's IIRC...

I lurk or this site more than I would like to say so most of you will not recognize my screen name. My job is in the water supply industry so I know what I am talking about. I would just like to set the record straight on Delta Lake. It is not the reservoir with PCB's. Donna reservoir has tested positive for them but I don't believe they have ever found the source.

He is "certainly" correct. It was the amoeba scare that happened at delta

I remember that!

TCEQ lists three sites in Hidalgo Co. having or having had Superfund remediation: Donna Reservoir and two locations in Mission.

As far I know, I still have classmates owning property on the west side of Delta Lake. It was at the time a nice place to be. The east side parking on the levee was a hassle. Remember the old club house on the east side though- lost of church parties.