Split Rock Lake is the only lake in Pipestone County, and it exists because the Works Progress Administration dammed Split Rock Creek in 1938. The dam was built from Sioux quartzite quarried a short distance away, the same hard red stone that shows up in the road bridge beside it and in buildings all over this corner of southwest Minnesota. The swim beach sits on the lake's shore inside Split Rock Creek State Park, roughly seven miles southwest of Pipestone off State Highway 23, closer still to the small towns of Ihlen and Jasper.

The beach is a compact strip of sand with its own parking lot a short walk away, separate from the picnic ground and the campground. The bottom shelves out slowly, which is why the park describes it as a good spot for families with small children rather than a place for lap swimming. A volleyball court sits next to the sand, and you can borrow the net and ball from the ranger station. No lifeguard is posted, as is the case at Minnesota state park beaches generally.

Two things to know about the water. Split Rock Lake is a shallow prairie impoundment rather than a spring-fed or quarry lake, so clarity varies through the season. And the dam has had attention recently. Park staff found a crack in one of the piers supporting the county road bridge over the dam in 2024, closed that bridge, and drew the lake down about a foot so an engineer could reach the pier by boat before letting it refill. The separate historic stone arch bridge nearby was rehabilitated around the same period. The lake itself was not drained, and the DNR still lists the swimming beach as an active facility with no closure notice against it.

The fee is a vehicle permit charged by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, required year round at every state park in the system. As of 2026 that is $7 for a single day or $35 for a permit good twelve months at every park, with a second vehicle at $26 and motorcycles at $30. The beach itself costs nothing beyond the permit on your windshield.

The Hiking Club Trail leaves right from the beach and loops 2.1 miles south through prairie. A quarter-mile accessible path called Redrock Trail runs from the picnic area to the dam. Canoes, kayaks and paddleboards rent from the ranger station between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day, first come first served, and there is an accessible fishing pier and a boat access that only handles smaller craft. The campground holds 33 drive-in sites, 21 of them with electricity, plus three cart-in sites. Vault toilets at the beach parking lot stay open all year, while the flush toilets and showers are seasonal. Park gates are open daily from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. Pipestone National Monument is about seven miles north.