Woodward Reservoir imposed its annual swimming ban Tuesday to protect drinking water for a few nearby cities. It runs from just after Labor Day to just before the next Memorial Day weekend.
The spot four miles north of Oakdale still has camping, picnics, fishing, waterfowl hunting and boating. The last of these has restrictions against golden mussels, a destructive invader around California.
Woodward’s ban involves both humans and pets swimming or standing in the water. During this stretch, treated reservoir water supplements wells for about 200,000 people in Manteca, Lathrop and Tracy,…