Sparks Lake lies 26 miles west-southwest of Bend along the Cascade Lakes Scenic Byway in Deschutes National Forest. Named for a nineteenth century rancher, “Lige” Sparks, the water body is a leftover of a greater lake that has halfway filled with sediment and vegetation.
Mount Bachelor, Three Sisters, Broken Top, along with countless Buttes can be seen from the lake. The reflective nature of this beautiful lake makes it a wonderful sunset spot.
The United States Forest Service keeps up a boat launch dispatch at Sparks Lake. The site has a parking area, a lake trail, and scattered camping areas accessible by boat. A more formal campground run by the Forest Service is adjacent along Soda Creek.
Sparks Lake supports populations of brook trout and stocked cutthroat trout. Fly fishing is the only kind of angling allowed on the lake. Motorboats may be used for transportation, but fishing is allowed from them only when their motors are turned off.