If you really use your imagination you might be able to picture how pretty this place must have been before some bureau of reclamation or army civil core of engineers project manager decided to come through and "improve" it. With trees all around and wildlife, you could picture a tranquil little stream winding its way through meadows and forests, perhaps with some inviting swimming holes or picturesque rapids. I tried looking up the history of Waugh Lake but couldn't uncover much information other than it seems to have been built in the late 1970s under the guise of power generation for Los Angeles, which I find hard to believe as I did not see any (substantial) power lines here or anywhere down to the trailhead I would eventually exit on. (The trail more or less follows Rush Creek, which used to run through what is now Waugh Lake(bed).