Once you've paid your entrance fee at the office, then depending on time time of your arrival for the day, the angle of the sun can guide you where to begin looking at the lake. in the winter, birds can lift off fairly early so scoping the western bank can be good for catching ducks, geese and gulls before they leave for the nearby fields. Plus this where shorebirds can many times gather during migration. The dam on the east side is usually where loons and diving mergansers would be, though they can drift just about anywhere. The southwest lagoon past the houses can give a bit of a wind break for many of the grebes for closer looks. When wet, the marsh past the northwest levee is great for dabbler ducks, rails and gallinules, shorebirds, and marsh passerines. The brushy areas across from the picnic tables to the northeast, behind the houses and RV camping area on the south shore and perfect for desert species, including Scaled Quail, Crissal, Sage and Curve-billed Thrasher, Green-tailed towhee, Brewer's, Black-throated Sparrows, Lark Bunting. At the very south end of the dirt road at the gate is where the creosote bushes are steady. This is a good spot for finding Sagebrush Sparrows. On the northwest corner of the lake, the dirt road ends at the Inlet Feeder Canal. This can be another good location for marsh passerines. Keep and eye out over head for Northern Harrier, Golden Eagles and Ferruginous Hawks in the winter and Zone-tailed and Swainson Hawks in the summer. Falcons are possible including Aplomado.

Balmorhea Lake is fed by water from San Soloman Springs as well as Sandia Creek. It was built in 1917 by the Reeves County Water Improvement District. It provides water for irrigation to the nearby agricultural fields. It is a private lake, there is an entrance fee required that can be paid at the store to the north east corner.