About Forest Lake

Forest Lake is a man-made, privately-owned, 11.4 acre reservoir located near the intersection of McFarland Boulevard and 15th Street, in the heart of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It rests in a slight valley between two high points in the terrain and is spring-fed in its northern end. The greater Forest Lake neighborhood was, mainly, a middleclass neighborhood from its post-WWII development till the mid-1990s. The lake has always been a natural habitat for ducks, geese, hawks, turtles, raccoon, opossum and beaver. Over the years the residents have stocked the lake with bass, catfish, bream, and other species of fish, and, to keep it clean, carp. Many Tuscaloosans, however, pass by and never see it – though it’s right in the middle of town.