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Some maps still show a lake and an island next to St. Francis Retreat in San Juan Bautista and some sources still call it a "seasonal lake" but the seasons ended 20 years ago.
In 1949, the retreat received a generous donation to build a 1,5 mile long hiking trail featuring the Stations of the Cross.
The trail was constructed around an artificial lake. The water for the lake came from a well uphills.
During the El Niño year 1998, overflow from the lake caused a massive landslide, disrupting much of the county's agriculture. As a result, the county ordered the retreat to discontinue feeding water into the pond and thus it fell dry.
In years of very heavy rain there may be some water for short periods of time, but the vast vegetation in the now dry lake-bed indicates, that that did not happen for a very long time.
In the middle of the artificial lake was a small artificial island, connected to the "main land" with a concrete bridge. The bridge is still there, but by now it is easier to reach the "island" just by walking across the dry lake.
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