Troy, here's some advice. Yes, you should be able to build your own pond. Do more homework. Get and study the handbook referred in earlier posts. It's excellent.
Coring the dam is a must. How deep? Soils tell you. Core as deep as you need to, to build a solid foundation on which to build your dam. Look at Mike Otto's story in Nov/Dec issue of Pond Boss. It's focus is core trenching. I have seen core trenches as deep as 20 feet, as shallow as 2.
The core trench also acts as an underground barrier against leakage. Water seeks the path of least resistance, and if your core trench is the lowest point, vertically, of your lake site, it will be an effective barrier against leakage, even if soils upstream are questionable. Water goes downhill.
Regarding bedrock problems..rock trenchers are great, but quite expensive. I have also worked on sites where pros dynamite bedrock to go deep enough to build the appropriate dam. Again, costly.

Teach a man to grow fish...
He can teach to catch fish...