Mercers Lake
{{Infobox body of water
|name = Mercers Lake
|image = Mercers Lake Merstham.jpg
|caption = View looking west from the cafe
| alt = View over lake with two pontoons extending into the water and trees lining the opposite shore in the distance
|image_bathymetry =
|caption_bathymetry =
|type = Lake
|inflow =
|outflow =
|basin_countries = United Kingdom
|location = Merstham, Surrey, UK
|length =
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|depth = {{convert|8|m|ft}}
|max-depth = {{convert|15|m|ft}}
|volume =
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|shore =
|elevation =
|islands =
|cities =
|frozen =
|coordinates = {{coord|51.2514|N|0.1412|W|display=inline,title}}
|pushpin_map = Surrey
|pushpin_label_position =
|pushpin_map_caption = Location in Surrey
| pushpin_map_alt = A map of Surrey with a mark indicating the location of Mercers Lake
}}
Mercers Lake is a body of water in Mercers Park, Merstham, near Redhill, Surrey. It is a former quarry that has been adapted for water sports, such as sailing, kayaking, and paddle boarding.
History
The lake was originally a sand quarry created by British Industrial Sands.{{Cite web|url=https://oysterdiving.com/mercers-country-park-inland-diving/|title=Mercers Country Park Inland Diving Lake|first=Mark|last=Murphy|date=July 23, 2020|website=Oyster Diving|access-date=2024-06-30|archive-date=2024-05-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240514144700/https://oysterdiving.com/mercers-country-park-inland-diving/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.merstham.co.uk/merstham/Gallery%20Pages/mw05.htm|title=Mercers Park|access-date=2024-06-30|archive-date=2023-05-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230522032420/http://www.merstham.co.uk/merstham/Gallery%20Pages/mw05.htm|url-status=live}}
File:Mercers Country Park Lake by the watersports cafe.jpg
The water sports centre was expanded to a larger cafe and adventure playground in early 2025.{{Cite web|url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/surrey-lake-transformed-community-hub-28728402|title=Surrey lake to be 'transformed' into community hub for water sport enthusiasts plus a new playground - Surrey Live|website=www.getsurrey.co.uk|access-date=2024-06-30|archive-date=2024-03-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240304062835/https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/surrey-lake-transformed-community-hub-28728402|url-status=live}}
Activities
The lake is used for fishing and contains perch, bream, pike, and large carp.{{Cite web |last=Murphy |first=Mark |date=2020 |title=Mercers Lake - Redhill dive site {{pipe}} Oyster Diving |url=https://oysterdiving.com/mercers-country-park-inland-diving/ |website=Oyster Diving}}
The lake is also used for scuba diving courses by Oyster Diving, a PADI Dive Centre. There are facilities for setting up equipment, hiring equipment and having guided dives. The lake is up to 15 m deep, and contains the remains of the front of a Cessna plane, other sunken attractions and an underwater forest.
Accidents and incidents
A 31-year-old man named Edward Savage drowned in the lake in June 2018. Local police had received a number of calls about youths swimming in the lake earlier in the week. The death was not connected to the company who run water sports there.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-surrey-44630313|title=Man who died at Mercer's Lake in Nutfield named|date=June 27, 2018|via=www.bbc.co.uk}}
In 2023 a swan was killed with a brick, following a similar incident in 2022, where a swan was shot with a ball bearing.{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ck7dj1yxglxo|title=Redhill: Police investigate after swan killed at Mercers Lake|date=June 14, 2023|website=BBC News|access-date=2024-06-30|archive-date=2024-02-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240210045653/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ck7dj1yxglxo|url-status=live}}