Johnson Lake State Recreation Area
- Status
- Open (per official listing)
- Entrance fee
- Not posted
- Day-use reservations
- None mentioned
- Dogs
- Not stated — check with park
- Camping
- Yes
- Official site
- outdoornebraska.gov(308) 785-2685
Official page last checked Oct 29, 2026. How we keep this current
Overview
Johnson Lake State Recreation Area is a 93-acre recreation area in Gosper County, about 8 miles southwest of Lexington.
Popular activities here are winter sports, boating, swimming, fishing, and wildlife watching. Facilities for water recreation include a swimming beach, a boat ramp, and a fishing pier. Camping is available: campsites, including tent sites and showers.
Camping
| Campground or site type | Sites | Hookups / features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camping Park-level flags from NGPC GIS; individual campgrounds and site counts not published in this source. | — | ElectricShowers | — |
Camping details from the park
Camping: Yes. Site types: pads with electric, non-pad sites without electric. Facilities in park: showers, dump station, drinking water, modern restrooms.
From the official park page, checked Oct 29, 2026. Site counts and prices can change; confirm when booking.
Things to do
CampingBoatingWinter sportsFishingPicnickingSwimmingHikingWildlife viewing and birding
Trails
| Trail | Length | Difficulty | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Share the Road Trail | 0.95 mi | Easy | Status: Open Restricted (lengths summed from GIS segments)HikeRoad BikeMountain BikeDog SledSnowshoeCross Country SkiHard Surface surface |
| Larry D. Roper Trail | 1.04 mi | Easy | Status: Open Restricted (lengths summed from GIS segments)HikeRoad BikeMountain BikeDog SledSnowshoeCross Country SkiHard Surface surface |
| Paul Matson Trail | 8.2 mi | Easy | Status: Open Restricted (lengths summed from GIS segments)HikeRoad BikeMountain BikeDog SledSnowshoeCross Country SkiHard Surface surface |
Trail descriptions from the park
Share the Road Trail (0.95 mi)
Larry D. Roper Trail (1.04 mi)
Paul Matson Trail (8.2 mi)
Boating and paddling
Boating, Boat ramp, Boat dock, Water skiing, Sailing
Fishing
Fishing, Accessible fishing piers, Fish cleaning station
A state fishing license is usually required.
Amenities
Facilities
- Restrooms
- Flush toilets
- Vault or pit toilets
- Showers
- Drinking water
- Picnic areas
- Picnic shelters
- Playground
- Parking
Water
- Swimming beach
- Boat ramp
- Marina or boat slips
- Fishing pier
- Fish cleaning station
Camping
- RV dump station
- Tent camping
Accessibility
- Accessible fishing
✓ listed by the park · ✕ the park says it is not available. Anything not shown here isn’t mentioned by the official source — that means unknown, not unavailable.
Accessibility
- Accessible fishing
Conditions change. Contact the park to confirm specific accessible features before your visit.
Getting there
- Address
- 1 East Park Dr. 25A
Elwood, NE 68937-9804 - Nearest town
- Lexington — about 8 mi southwest (straight line)
- Coordinates
- 40.6863, -99.8372
- Phone
- (308) 785-2685
- ngpc.Johnson.Lake@nebraska.gov
Nearby state parks
Sources and freshness
- Nebraska State Parks — park page — last checked Oct 29, 2026; page says updated Sep 30, 2016
- NGPC ArcGIS feature service Parks_Locations (owner NGPC.GISAdmin) + TrailsNewmap layer 8
- USGS PAD-US 4.1 (boundary and acreage)
“Last checked” is when our system last read the official source. No change has been detected since this page was first published. Hours, fees and rules can change without notice — confirm with the park before you go. Methodology