Thanks for the replies.

I live about 5 miles west of Willow Springs, Missouri in the Ozark Mountains. I have done quite a bit of research on this site, but nothing definate has been figured out. I have posted before, trying to summon the courage to build the dam myself, but smart enough to know I did not have all the answers.

How do I tell what kind of rock it is? Today I had one of the local pond builders come out and look at the hole and the rock. He said that there was not enough clay on top of the rock. I asked what the difference was from having some clay on the rock to pushing the clay down the hill onto the rock. He said that would not work. I am still a little confused about the difference. He said in passing that the rock was limestone. I do not know how thick it is. I am going to try digging in a spot down from my first hole to see if the rock is constant.

My research has included:

Some soil guys came out from the USDA and said my land had very favorable clays, but they did not like the site that my house overlooks. They too hit that rock with their little 3" auger. They tried to get me to build a pond about a 1/4 mile from the house.

I had a local pond builder come out and shoot the site. He said that the site below my house laid perfect for a nice lake, and that I would have 5 to 6 acres of water, and 20 feet deep at the dam. He told me to dig down until I found good material. He gave me an estimate of $8000 dollars, if the good material was there.

The local USDA office would not design the dam for me - the guy said the dry creek drained 160 acres, and he couldn't design one that big.

I should add that there are several dry lakes around this area. I don't know if it's the rock or the pond builders.

Needless to say, it has been very discouraging, but I refuse to give up my dream of sitting on the porch over looking my own lake.

Any other suggestions?