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Aleck Meadow is a picturesque reservoir created in 1922 when Ernest Stillman built a dam on a portion of Black Rock Brook that ran through the middle of a former dairy farm meadow. Since that time, the reservoir has been used to provide water to the village of Cornwall-on-Hudson and the town of Cornwall, and therefore no swimming or fishing is allowed. Aquatic life is abundant in the pond, from dragonflies and aquatic insects to fish, amphibians, and reptiles of many species. Most of the painted and snapping turtles in the pond have been tagged with electronic transponders in a long term study of turtle population dynamics. Beavers, osprey, and eagles also visit the pond on occasion. The Stillman Trail (yellow blazes) to the summit of Black Rock Mountain follows an old road around the base of the dam and then up through the Forest to the summit. Aleck Meadow connects with the Science Center and Upper Reservoir areas via a number of trails and dirt roads, defining an outstanding nature classroom/laboratory area featuring very easy access.