Lake Rupert: Damselflies' Playground

4 July 2015

Lake #48        Lake Rupert, Wellston Wildlife Area, Vinton County

Lake Rupert is pretty much in the middle of nowhere. The 327-acre lake is located approximately one mile north of the town of Hamden. The west side of the lake runs along State Route 683, one half mile north of its intersection with State Route 93. There is a gas station with a convenience store and restrooms at this intersection. This is the only business I saw for miles, so if you need something this is the only place to get it. Lake Rupert was built in 1969 to provide a water supply for the city of Wellston, located approximately 5 miles south of the lake, and for public recreation. The l,298-acre Wellston Wildlife Area surrounds the lake.

Lake Rupert 

Lake Rupert has one boat ramp; it is located at the lake’s midpoint off State Route 683. There are no facilities at the lake. There are several spots along State Route 683 where you could put in a kayak.  I chose to put in on the north end opposite the Lake Road parking area. Lake Rupert has a maximum depth of 24 feet at its southern end, near the dam, but most of the lake is in the 3 to 12 foot range.

Lake Rupert Boat Ramp 

My Put In at the Northwestern Section of the Lake

Looking East Across the Lake From the Put In

Looking South From the Put In 

Looking North From the Put In 

Plenty of Room for a Car and Trailer at the Put In 

Lake Rupert has no limits on horsepower but motorized boats must operate at no wake speed. What is no wake speed? Wake speed seems to be whatever speed the boater deems to go. While I didn’t have any issues on this lake, several times I have been paddling in a “no wake zone” and had boats zoom past me. The definition of no wake speed is the speed at which there is no “white” water in the track or path of the vessel or in created waves near the vessel. Basically, this means no speed in excess of 5 miles per hour. I think allowing boats without a horsepower limit is just too much temptation for most boaters; traveling at or below idle speed is tough when you have all that speed available. It would be so much better for kayakers if the Ohio Department of Natural Resources would just establish a limit to 10 horsepower motors.  

Upon putting in, I headed north to where Little Raccoon Creek enters the lake. Little Raccoon Creek is the largest tributary of Raccoon Creek that starts near Lake Hope (the same lake that I will be paddling later today) in Hocking County and travels south to empty into the Ohio River. The northern end of the lake is filled with pink water lilies. I watched a bee working his pollination magic.

Paddling Northwest From the Put In

Field of Pink Water Lilies 

My Hubby and Paddling Buddy for the Day in the Background

Watching One of the Many Miracles of Nature 

The End of the "Road" 

As I was paddling south I had a bald eagle fly overhead; unfortunately, the eagle was too far off for a good photo. Closer at hand were numerous dragonflies and damselflies. There were several bluet damselflies that hitched a ride on my kayak and flew around me as I paddled. I decided to name the baby duck for this lake Bluet in honor of their beauty.

Heading South 

A Type of Bluet Damselflies

Baby Duck Bluet  

I continued heading south until I came to the large eastern arm of the lake. There, I saw a couple fishing; the only other boat out on the water. I was surprised that there were not more people at the lake since it was a holiday. I also saw some cool mushrooms growing along the bank and was visited by many more damselflies. I paddled until I reached the end of the arm and then took a little relaxation break.

Heading South to Eastern Arm

Heading Into Eastern Arm

Eastern Arm of Lake Rupert

Cool Mushrooms Along the Bank 

End of the Arm

Soaking Up Some Rare Ohio Sunshine 

After soaking up some sunshine, it was time to paddle back to the trunk of the lake and paddle north back to the put in.

Heading Out of the Arm 

Back on the Main Body of the Lake 

The Wellston Wildlife Area surrounding the lake is a mixture of woodlands, brush land, and open land. The eastern side of the lake, including the arm, is much more scenic than the western side. There are suppose to be beaver well established on the lake but I did not see any evidence of beaver activity. I also didn’t see any of the resident wood ducks. But I did not paddle the area south of the boat ramp leading to the dam. Access to the dam by land is gained from a parking area located off Highway 93; I do not know if it would be a good put in spot. 

May all your roads end in water,

Mama Duck Mona

Dow Lake: Don't Know Much About Snakes

3 July 2015

Lake #47         Dow Lake, Strouds Run State Park, Athens County

161-acre Dow Lake is surrounded by 2,606 acres of uninterrupted forest that makes up Strouds Run State Park. The glaciers that flattened out most of Ohio did not make it here; although, their melted waters did causing many deep ravines. The park has a wilderness feel to it even though it is located only two miles east of Athens.  Settlers arrived in this area in 1796 as a result of an apportionment by the Ohio Company. This resulted in the founding of the town of Athens and Ohio University, the first college in the Northwest Territory.

Dow Lake in the Rain 

The lake’s single boat ramp is located off County Road 20 (Strouds Run Road) on the northwest section of the lake. The park’s camping area (78 non-electric sites), 900-foot swimming beach, and boathouse with boat rentals are all located close by. The dam, completed in 1960, is located on Dow Lake’s southeastern shore and can be accessed off U.S. Highway 50. There are 40 miles of trails that meander through the park, including lengthy bridle and hiking trails that circle the lake. These trails are not noticeable from the water as there is limited shoreline access.

Dow Lake's Boat House

Lonely Kayaks and Canoes

Picnic Shelter Near Swimming Beach

It was another unseasonably cold day with threat of rain; it seems I say that for about every lake.  When I complete my BHAG, I am going to go back and count how many of the lakes I kayaked in the rain; I am guessing it will be at least half. There was one family using the swimming beach. The pit latrines here are the closest restrooms to the boat ramp. There was a single fishing boat out on the water. 

Dow Lake Swimming Beach 

Where Are All the People? 

One Family Has the Entire Beach to Themselves

A Pretty Spot for a Picnic Near the Beach 

The lake’s depth ranges from a few feet to 25 feet near the dam. The lake has a 10 horsepower limit. The west end of the lake, where the boat ramp is located, is weed choked. The boat ramp is located on a small arm, when I put in I headed to the other western arm of the lake. There was a picnic table by the lake that looked very inviting. Heading up the far western arm I passed a great blue heron and a turtle trying in vain to find some sunshine. The threat of rain became a reality as a light mist began to fall.

Dow Lake Boat Ramp

Heading Up Western Arm From the Boat Ramp

Pretty Picnic Spot Off Strouds Run Road 

Trees, Trees, and More Trees

I continued paddling northwest up the arm, following the stream channel, with my paddle buddy husband. After hitting the mud flats, we turned around and headed back to the main body of the lake.

Exploring the Western Arm 

Solitude on the Lake

Heading South Out of Arm 

Back to the Main Body of the Lake

We paddled south and explored a small cove on the west side of the lake. Then we continued paddling south toward the dam. By this time the mist had turned to true rain. We crossed over to the other side of the lake and explored the large eastern arm. I saw a tree stump near the bank that looked like a good spot for taking baby duck’s photograph. As I was placing him on the stump, I received a bit of a scare. When I looked up, there was a snake curled up on the shore. I do not consider myself overly afraid of snakes but I certainly don’t want to mess with them.  I didn’t know what kind of snake it was but I decided to name baby duck after the snake once I did. This was the first snake I had seen kayaking. When I was trying to find what type of snake it was, I couldn’t find it. I was looking at Ohio land snakes because the snake was on land when I saw it. I thought, "Wow, I have seen a rare snake." By accident, I saw a listing of Ohio water snakes and there was the snake. Guess what kind it was, a common water snake. So my "rare land snake" was just a common water one. I had not known that water snakes actually come out of the water. It turns out that water snakes are fond of basking and can often be seen sunning upon logs and rocks, or on low branches overhanging the water. Common water snake did not seem like a fancy enough name for my first kayaking snake encounter so I decided to go with his Latin scientific name, nerodia sipedon sipedon (or nerodia for short).

Heading Southeast Toward Dam 

Small Cove to Explore 

Heading Into Eastern Arm 

Baby Duck Nerodia 

Nerodia Sipedon Sipedon aka Common Watersnake 

After my snake encounter, I headed out of the arm back toward the main body of the lake. I was starting to paddle toward the dam when the light rain turned to a deluge. I decided that I had seen enough and headed back to the boat ramp. Along the way, I passed the now empty swimming beach. Boy, it seems like I do a lot of paddling in the rain.

Here Comes the Rain 

And More Rain 

Heading Back to the Boat Ramp

The Now Empty Swimming Beach 

May all your roads end in water,

Mama Duck Mona