Geography

Rock Lake is in south central Wisconsin, at Lake Mills, Wisconsin

Lake Mills, Wisconsin

Lake Mills is a city in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,843 at the 2000 census. The city is located partially within the Town of Lake Mills.-Geography:Lake Mills is located at ....

 in Jefferson County, Wisconsin

Jefferson County, Wisconsin

Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 74,021. Its county seat is Jefferson.-Geography:According to the U.S...

 approximately 20 miles (32.2 km) east of Madison

Madison, Wisconsin

Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....

. It is 87 feet (26.5 m) at its deepest point.

The lake shape resembles a slight figure eight with several distinct areas. South of the figure eight portion of the lake lies Bean Lake State natural area which is a protected marsh. Part of the south western part of the figure eight is usually covered in tall aquatic vegetation that reach out of the water. In the north western portion of the figure eight there is a sand bar which often has boats anchored and is swimming accessible.

The Glacial Drumlin State Trail

Glacial Drumlin State Trail

The Glacial Drumlin State Trail is a multipurpose rail trail in the midwestern United States. It stretches 52 miles from Waukesha, Wisconsin to Cottage Grove, Wisconsin. It also goes through Lake Mills, Wisconsin where it crosses Rock Lake, Wisconsin on an old railroad bridge.The name refers to a...

 runs across an old rail road bridge across the southern portion of the lake. The trail separates the lake from the marsh area to the south of the lake.

Mounds

Rock Lake is perhaps most famous for its underwater "pyramids" believed by some to be built by the Aztalan natives at a time when water levels were much lower.

Mound

Mound

A mound is a general term for an artificial heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. The most common use is in reference to natural earthen formation such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. The term may also be applied to any rounded area of topographically...

s shaped like pyramids exist three miles (5 km) east of Rock Lake in a State Park called Aztalan State Park

Aztalan State Park

Aztalan State Park is a Wisconsin state park located just south of the town of Aztalan, Wisconsin at latitude N 43° 4' and longitude W 88° 52', and established in 1952. It was also designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966...

, on the Crawfish River

Crawfish River

The Crawfish River is a tributary of the Rock River, long, in south-central Wisconsin in the United States. Via the Rock River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River....

 in the town of Aztalan, Wisconsin

Aztalan, Wisconsin

Aztalan is a town in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,447 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated communities of Aztalan and Jefferson Junction are located in the town.-Aztalan State Park:...

. The park has National Landmark Status and is a Midwestern archeological treasure. The mounds are thought to have been built by the Mississippian Mound Builders, and it is speculated that the site at Aztalan is a northern outpost of Cahokia

Cahokia

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site is the area of an ancient indigenous city located in the American Bottom floodplain, between East Saint Louis and Collinsville in south-western Illinois, across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. The site included 120 human-built earthwork mounds...

, a much larger city in present day Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

 not far from St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

.

The waters of Rock Lake have also been referred to as "Tyranena", (Tie-ra-nee-na) and that name has persisted in the area as well, and is used by businesses, road names and a park that is on the lake.

Beaches

There are two public beaches Bartel's beach, and Sandy Beach; both are located in the south eastern portion of the lake.

Fishing

Pike, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, rock bass, pumpkinseed, bluegill, sunfish and walleye can be found in Rock Lake.