Pond Design feedback and ideas

[Larry_Van_Horn]

I have enjoyed reading and seeing the pictures of others ponds. I am due to have mine built next month. I dug the test pits this week (13 ft) and things look very good. The pond will be approximately 1/2 acre with depths down to 12 ft deep. Basic runoff fed design with a core trench. I am intending to put a beach area in for my little ones with a more gradual grade and sand. I am thinking about having some time of cloth barrier put down in this area covered with large gravel and then sand over that to keep the sand from skiding down into the pond.

Do any of your from your experience have any design considerations that are worthwhile for me to consider?
Appreciate any insight.
Thanks,
Larry

 

[WCarlson]

Larry,
I have a similarly sized pond in the same general geographic area (between a third and a half acre, 11 feet deep). there was a good thread on ponds in April <font color="blue"> Ponds </font> In it I recommended a couple books on ponds that I have found to be most useful. The entire post was:
<font color="blue"> Heath,
Before you go too far in your pond building adventure, I would recommend two books on the subject. They may be available at your library and I know are available at amazon.com (or at least they were a couple years ago.
They are:

Ponds- Building, Maintaining, Enjoying by Carolyn Garrick Stern. Published by Progressive Farmer, Inc in 1996

Earth Ponds Sourcebook by Tim Matson. Published by The Countryman Press in 1997

These two books go through the whole process, Stern's even has minimum depths by location in the country based on rainfall. I have found them most useful and would have liked to have read them before, not after, I had a pond. I would have done things differently. Kind of like finding Tractorbynet after buying a tractor.
Bill </font>

I would be happy to answer any questions you may have or show it to you if you are over this way.
Bill