A Springfield landmark for sailing, fishing, and hiking, Fellows Lake holds a special place for scores of families who have visited it during its 70-year history. Today, Fellows Lake is experiencing a resurgence in popularity and is receiving a much-needed makeover to its facilities, management, and infrastructure.
For the 2022 season, maybe the most exciting news is that sailing is back – and in a big way!
The newly created Springfield Sailing Club is hard at work to make Fellows Lake a sailing destination for everyone. Three regattas are planned, beginning sailing classes are filling up and there is a whole fleet of sailboats of various sizes that will be available to rent all season.
Spearheaded by a dedicated group of local sailing enthusiasts, The Springfield Sailing Club at Fellows Lake came together over the winter and has really hit the ground running. Thanks to a generous financial donation and multiple boat and equipment donations, the sailing program is ready to help return Fellows Lake to the sailing hotspot it was for many years.
In recent years, it was pretty rare to see a single sail on the water at Fellows, even on the best of summer days. Today, however, there is sail rigging clattering at the new dock and a lot of excitement about new programs available for both experienced and novice sailors. This is a development that makes Fellows Lake Director of Operations Manager Matt Taylor very happy.
“Sailing is back! I learned to sail on Fellows when I was 12 years old.”, the now white-haired Taylor said last week. “Back in the day, this was a choice location to sail – the wind is consistently present, there is less congestion on the water from other boats, and we are only 15 minutes from Springfield.”
Anybody who is interested in learning more about sailing classes, joining the Springfield Sailing Club or just want to come out and see a regatta should contact the club through their Facebook page, or you can visit or call the Fellows Lake store at 417-840-2965.
The Fellows Lake store is located at the top of the hill from the dock and is open seven days a week from sunrise to sunset through the end of October. Stocking drinks, snacks, light tackle, and worms, stop in to get your 2022-2023 boat permits, or rent a boat and trade Fellows Lake stories with the staff!
In addition to the new sailing program, Fellows now has:
– Over 25 miles of new hiking and mountain biking trails
– A new safe and ADA accessible dock
– Five new powerboats including two pontoon boats for rent
– New kayak and canoe launch facilities with over 40 canoes and kayaks for rent
– Future plans include:
o Expanding the hiking and biking trails to create a continuous trail encircling the lake
o Construction of new inclusive playground and picnic facilities
o A new store to serve the dock
o Renovation of the large pavilions
o New entrance and upgraded infrastructure
o Permanent toilets at Miller Park
o And more to come!
Visit watershedcommittee.org/fellowslake to learn more about how The Watershed Committee of The Ozarks and City Utilities have worked together to protect and improve Fellows Lake for over 30 years.
