Colliford is Cornwall’s largest inland water, with a vast surface area of 900 acres – that’s about 682 football pitches! Located just off the A30, the lake is a couple of miles south of Jamaica Inn, the famous smugglers’ haunt immortalised by Daphne du Maurier.

Download our ideas for 25 things to see and do at  Colliford Lake. 

Car parking is £2.00 for one hour, £3.00 for three hours or £6.00 for the whole day. Your contribution helps us to maintain the lakes for everyone.

Colliford - Exploring the beast of Bodmin Moor

With ample car parking, well-appointed picnic areas and lakeside walks, Colliford is the perfect location to enjoy the peace of the countryside. Three way-marked walks offer beautiful views of neighbouring moorland. Explore Bodmin Moor to your heart’s content, and bring along lunch to refuel outdoors, engaging with all nature has to offer.

Please note that dogs are not permitted on the dam due to South West Water's regulations. Also, it is not possible to walk right around the lake due to a nature reserve and private land. Please be aware of this when planning your walks.

Kerdroya

An ambitious and creative land art project, Kerdroya is an enduring legacy to the craft of Cornish hedging - a 56-metre-wide labyrinth, built using traditional stone hedging techniques. The project is a celebration of Cornwall’s rich landscape, created by Will Coleman of Golden Tree.

Visitors to the site can meander along a 750m winding path to the heart of the labyrinth, where they will discover a masterpiece of engineered art by local father and son team, Thomas and Gary Thrussell. From there, they may stop a while to take in the expansive view of Colliford Lake and its surrounding moorland.

Download the Places and Trails app, for a guided tour and story of Kerdroya.

The project has been supported by Cornwall National Landscapes, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Cornwall Council, South West Lakes Trust, South West Water, FEAST, Arts Council England, Guild of Cornish Hedgers, CREST, local corporate sponsors, and community funding.

Wildlife at Colliford Lake 

In winter, you might spot wigeon, goldeneye, golden plover, lapwing and snipe. Great crested grebe are also frequent visitors to the lake. In summer, you can see large numbers of swifts, swallows, house martins and sand martins feeding on insects. The Nature Reserve is also an important site for birdlife and for this reason is not open to the public. 

Fishing at Colliford Lake

Traditional fly-fishing for natural brown trout is available at Colliford. The lake is regarded as Cornwall’s premier brown trout fishery. Find out more here.

Bodmin Moor Gateway Project

Our newly refurbished toilets and visitor information centre are complete, with the toilets opening seasonally. This project adds to the enhancement of this area of the lake for the local community and visitors. 

Download a PDF document prior to your visit to find out about the lake, the wider area and the walks you can enjoy. Please note that dogs are not permitted on the dam, in accordance with South West Water's regulations. 

This is a project funded by:

• The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development as a LEADER project via the Atlantic and Moor Local Action Group
• South West Water 
• South West Lakes Trust

Proceeds from the facilities contribute towards cleaning and maintaining them for the future. 

      

Parking information 

There are three car parks available to use around Colliford Lake. The visitor information centre car park, Simonstone middle car park and the Dam car park) have height restriction barriers of 2m, 2.1m and 2m respectively. These are in line with our stance on wild camping, which is not permitted at any of the lakes. However campsites are available at five of our sites, including Siblyback nearby. Find out more here.

Nearby is Dozmary Pool, whose outflow runs into Colliford Lake. According to legend, this is where King Arthur rowed out to the Lady of the Lake and received the sword Excalibur.

Address: Colliford Lake, St Neot, near Liskeard, PL14 6PZ