ED ZIERALSKI / Union-Tribune Even with low water level, Lake Morena is worth visiting.

LAKE MORENA VILLAGE – Maybe it's the cool breeze that whispers to the oaks, or the glistening water of Lake Morena as the sun hits it at sundown. Peace and tranquility, they're part of the charm and worth the drive.

You're 63 miles from San Diego, the lake level is WAY down, it's 99 degrees, but for some reason you don't mind at all.

“If you want to be on the water at daybreak, you've gotta get up real early to get here for it,” said Beryl Buchanan, supervising ranger.

Lake Morena How to get there: Lake is 63 miles east of San Diego. Take I-8 east to Buckman Springs Road. Go right (south) for six miles to Oak Drive. Turn right on Oak Drive, then turn right on Lake Morena Drive to the lake entrance. Schedule: Open daily, a half hour before sunrise to a half hour after sunset. Fish species and special regulations: Largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, carp and trout, the latter stocked in fall, winter and spring. Critters: Being at 3,000 feet and in the foothills of the Lagunas, this lake is a magnet for wildlife. Everything from ground squirrels to bald eagles and mountain lions. Concessions: Soda machines at the lake, but malt shop in Lake Morena Village has snacks, bait and drinks and a small selection of fishing tackle. Fishing tip: Legendary for its summer buzzbait action and topwater bite in late summer, early fall. Catfish bite all year long. Bluegill and even trout hitting near shore. Use wax worms for bluegill. Fish near any stickups or brushy areas for the best action. Trout can still be found near the dam and even close to shore in the mornings. Fish them with night crawlers deep by the dam, or use Powerbait with a sliding sinker on the bottom or a few feet below the surface with a bobber. Fly and a bubble works here, and fly fishermen catch big numbers. Access: Newly paved road makes driving easy for all vehicles. Great hiking trails to shoreline fishing spots north and south. Fishing permits: Adult permit, ages 16-61, $5; senior permit, 62 and older (Monday-Friday only), $3.50; disabled permit, $3.50; youth permit, 8-15, $2.50; kids 7 and under, free; annual fishing permit, valid for one year from date of purchase, $30. Parking: Day use, $3 per vehicle; seniors free; annual parking pass for multiple vehicles in the same household, $40. Boat rentals: Full-day motorboat, $35; seniors, Wednesday-Friday, $17.50; disabled, $17.50. Rowboats full day, $15; seniors, $11, Wednesday-Friday. Launch fee for motorboats, sailboats, kayaks, canoes, sailboards, $6. Annual lake use launch permit, $75, valid for one year from date of purchase. Camping: Partial hookup sites, electricity and water, $20; developed sites, nonhookups for tents or RVs, $15; cabins, $30; pet fee per night, $1. Resident discount card (waives reservation fee, $1 camping discount), $35; senior resident discount card (camping discounts Sunday-Thursday only), $15. Information: Camping reservations: (858) 565-3600; fish and weather hotline, (619) 478-5473.

Buchanan and his staff are doing their best to modernize the lake, the equivalent of restoring a 1960 Chevy. There is a new playground and pavilion, and Buchanan and his staff have rounded up a terrific display of live local snakes and fish in the ranger station, along with artifacts collected through the years.

Buchanan said the lake may not look good right now because of its low level, but he's seen it worse.

“We're not even to the lower launch ramp yet or the lower loop road,” he said.

Where's Charles M. Hatfield when you need him? If ever this place needed the old “Rainmaker's” services, it's now. There's a plaque just off the road south of the ranger station that marks the spot where Hatfield and his younger brother, Joel, constructed a 20-foot Moisture Accelerator in 1916. Hatfield's machine was blamed for the Storm of the Century that killed dozens of people, flooded Otay and Mission valleys and washed out Lower Otay and Sweetwater dams and more than 100 bridges. That was Hatfield and his brother, after changing their name to Benson, mixing out of town and never collecting the $10,000 for filling Morena.

Completed in 1912, the Morena dam, its water and 3,250-acre watershed are owned by the city of San Diego. San Diego County leases the land, and its Park and Recreation Department operates it for fishing, boating and camping. But the county has no control over the water level. Fortunately, Cottonwood Creek runs during the rainy season and replenishes the lake with runoff.

Camping is popular, especially on weekends, when the grounds usually are full. Weekdays are the best time to visit.

The South Campground has 86 individual campsites, with 58 offering electrical and water hookups for RVs. Ten rustic cabins are available through reservations.

Fishing can be spectacular. On the wall in the ranger office there's Arden Hanline's 19-pound, 3-ounce bass caught in 1987, the 17th-largest bass ever caught. There's Ned Sparks Sewell's 13-pound, 9-ounce bass, fooled with a wooly bugger on 8-pound tippet in 1984, at the time the largest bass landed on a fly rod, and now No. 2.

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This is the seventh in a Saturday series on San Diego County's lakes. Next week: El Capitan. To see previous stories and a map of area lakes, go to uniontrib.com/sports/outdoors