Shenango Lake Mahaney Outflow Riverview Picnic Shelter

Overview Situated within the suburban Shenango Valley, Shenango Lake provides an attractive setting where visitors can spend the day picnicking, camping, fishing, boating, or enjoying nature's beauty at one of the lake's many recreation areas. The Mahaney Outflow Recreation Area Day Use is located off of Kelly Road in Hermitage, PA, adjacent to the Shenango Dam, and provides one covered group picnic shelter (Riverview Shelter) with electric as well as access to the river and dam outflow to go fishing. Recreation Come explore and enjoy the outdoors! The lake provides a variety of recreational opportunities, including, but not limited to, picnicking, camping, fishing, boating, swimming, hiking, viewing wildlife and hunting. Picnickers can rent, for a fee, one of our seven picnic pavilions located within four different recreation areas. Boating is a popular activity where areas are provided on the lake for unlimited horsepower operation, as well as restricted horsepower and minimum wake operation. Many fishing enthusiasts are attracted to the waters of Shenango for the crappie, bass, walleye, catfish and muskellunge that inhabit the river, lake and tailwaters. Campers visiting the lake will enjoy spacious facilities at our 330-site campground. Facilities The Mahaney Outflow Rec Area Day Use offers one group picnic shelter (Riverview Shelter) that can accommodate between 42-56 people, depending upon the use of 6-8 people per table. Electric is available at the shelter with a paid reservation only, grills are available on site, and flush toilets and drinking water are provided at the restroom adjacent to the shelter (seasonal). A children's playground and small hiking trail are located on site. The Shenango Dam and Outflow are just a short walk from this location where you can view the concrete gravity dam as well as fish the outflow and river. The Mahaney Rec Area is just a short distance away featuring a disc golf course and access to the lake for fishing and a paved boat ramp.

Natural Features Shenango Lake stretches 11 miles up its namesake river, covering over 11,000 acres. The shore is lined with a northern hardwood forest of shady and colorful trees such as black cherry, beech, maple, and hemlock. Deer, turkey and other small game animals are plentiful, with excellent opportunities to observe osprey and eagles in the area.

Nearby Attractions The Shenango Water Trail provides 7.5 miles of scenic river corridor for paddlers, with three access points between Kidds Mill Park and Big Bend. Life jackets must be worn on all canoes and kayaks. The historic Kidds Mill Covered Bridge features the unique "Smith-Truss" design from the 1800s. Remnants of the Erie Extension Canal can be found nearby in Sharpsville below the Shenango Dam. The Shenango and Mahaney Recreations Areas feature restoration chestnut tree orchards that are managed through a partnership with the American Chestnut Foundation for research and education, with the goal of developing blight resistant American chestnut trees.

Take Exit 4B off of I-80 and follow Route 18 north for approximately 5 miles. Make a left at the stoplight onto Lamor Road (the intersection with Dollar General and D'Onofrio's Food Center at the corners). Stay straight on that road for 2 miles; Lamor Road will eventually turn into South Walnut Street. Make a right onto East High Street. Continue on this road where you will cross a one-lane steel bridge. Just up the hill from that, you will come to a "y" in the road. Veer right at this intersection and make another right shortly after that. This is the entrance to the Mahaney Outflow Rec Area and the picnic shelter and parking lot will be just around the corner to the right.