Mud Lake Conservation Area preserves a wetland area in the town of Clear Lake that was acquired by Skagit Land Trust between 1998 and 2006. Mud Lake Conservation Area provides important waterfowl habitat and acts as a reservoir for flood waters from the Skagit River.

Ecology

Mud Lake Conservation Area is located in the Nookachamps watershed, providing high quality habitat for waterfowl, fish and other animals. Cattails, yellow pond lilies, shrubs and trees grow along a majority of the shoreline. It is fairly difficult to reach the lake itself for recreation, so it is less disturbed than many other lakes in the area. Birds nest on and around the lake. A variety of amphibian species have been observed.

Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife has modeled Mud Lake as possible habitat for Chinook, Coho, Chum and Pink salmon. Mud Lake Conservation Area also protects habitat for the following Washington State Priority Species: Salmon and trout, cavity nesting birds (Wood Ducks and other waterfowl), Great Blue Herons, Pileated Woodpeckers, Vaux’s Swift, Townsend’s Big-eared Bats, and Mink. Fun fact: over 25 species of spiders have been documented at Mud Lake Conservation Area!

Above: A salamander found at Mud Lake by Girl Scouts who participated in a stewardship project planting native trees in 2017. Photograph credit: Skagit Land Trust staff.

Mud Lake Conservation Area serves a significant role in storing water to buffer floodwaters from the Skagit River. It is located entirely in the floodplain of the Skagit River. 

Stewardship and Conservation

Above: Students from Emerson High School participate in stewardship at Mud Lake Conservation Area in 2015. Photograph credit: Skagit Land Trust staff.

Mud Lake Conservation Area is part of Skagit Land Trust’s Conservation Classrooms Program, which provides hands-on learning experiences through field-based education and stewardship projects for elementary, middle, and high school classes in Skagit County. Teachers are invited to bring their students for field trips. See our Engaging Youth in Conservation page for more details.

Stewardship and management of this property is possible with the help of many hardworking volunteers.

Click here to read more about the Land Stewards for this or other Skagit Land Trust properties.

Above: Volunteer Girl Scouts plant native trees and shrubs at Mud Lake Conservation Area in 2012. Photograph credit: Skagit Land Trust staff.

Access

Mud Lake Conservation Area is located on the west edge of the town of Clear Lake. The property is along Mud Lake Road, between a narrow 2 acre strip of open land owned by the Clear Lake Historical Association (to the east, along Hwy 9) and privately owned land (to the north and west). The site is almost entirely within the FEMA 100 year floodplain. Clear Lake borders Mud Lake to the east.

Mud Lake Conservation Area provides public access to Mud Lake which is occasionally used for recreational boating and fishing. The Clear Lake Historical Association owns a grassy strip of land between Skagit Land Trust property and Highway 9 which is used as a park and a community space.  Children from the area play in the forest around the edges of the lake. 

There is a large grassy strip along Hwy 9 with a view overlooking the lake and an interpretive sign with historical information. 

Click here for a link to Google Maps for Mud Lake Conservation Area. 

Students from Mount Vernon participate in restoration and a trash cleanup at Mud Lake Conservation Area. Photograph credit: Skagit Land Trust staff.

Click on the map above for an enlarged image. Map created using 2017 NAIP aerial imagergy.