Mound Valley Swimming Beach is the public sand beach inside Mound Valley Park, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation area on Pearson-Skubitz Big Hill Lake in Labette County, Kansas. The Corps' Tulsa District runs the lake, a 1,240-acre reservoir on Big Hill Creek in the wooded country of southeast Kansas that people call the Little Ozarks. Of the lake's four Corps day-use areas, Mound Valley is the one with a designated swim beach. It sits on a low sandy point at the south end of the lake, just east of Big Hill Dam and about 5 miles east of Cherryvale.

From U.S. 169 in Cherryvale, go east on Main Street through town, turn right on Olive Street, and after half a block turn left onto County Route 5000. Stay on it about 4.5 miles to the lake and follow the Mound Valley signs. The park road runs north from the county road below the dam, and a paved lot sits a short walk from the sand. The park's mailing address is 19065 Cherryvale Parkway, Cherryvale, KS 67335.

The beach is a broad crescent of sand that faces southwest into the lake, with a line of buoys marking off the swim area in front of it. The Corps calls Big Hill one of the clearest lakes in Kansas. There is no current, though wind across the open south end can raise chop. Depths inside the buoys are not posted, so wade in before anyone jumps. No lifeguards work here; Corps signs read No Lifeguard, Swim at Your Own Risk. A change house stands behind the sand. Alcohol and pets are both banned on the beach.

Swimming here is not free. Anyone using the swim beach, the boat ramp or the horse trail has to buy a USACE day-use pass, unless they are camping in the park. At Mound Valley the pass is $5.00 per private vehicle per day and covers everyone riding in that vehicle. An annual pass is $40.00. You can buy the Mound Valley Day Use pass ahead of time on Recreation.gov or pay on site, where your license plate is used as proof of payment. A daily pass is good until 11:59 PM on its date, and it does not guarantee you a parking space. The Corps does not post set beach hours online. The park has limited staff, so call the project office at (620) 336-2741 before a trip.

Kansas lakes are subject to blue-green algae watches and warnings from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment in late summer. Check the current KDHE list before you swim and stay out of water that looks like green paint or scum. Boats launch from the ramp next door, and boaters have to stay at idle speed near swimmers and ramps, but give the buoy line a wide berth anyway. Outside the reservation season the flush toilets and showers close, and only vault toilets stay open.

Mound Valley has 85 campsites, most of them on the water, along with three group sites, showers, a boat ramp and boat trailer parking. Rangers have run Saturday evening programs in summer. Big Hill is also known for fishing, mainly crappie, largemouth and smallmouth bass, walleye and catfish. The 17-mile Big Hill Lake Horse Trail follows a hardwood ridge above the water and is open to hikers too. Most land around the lake is open to public hunting in season. Cherryvale Park and the Overlook picnic area are nearby on the same lake.