Blake Falls Reservoir, part two

O.K. back to Blake Falls Reservoir and the finish of my description of our paddle there a few weeks ago.  See part one for GPS coordinates.  Below is another pretty view from our picnic spot.  Just to the right, out of the frame and across the reservoir, is the southern put-in.  Also, this view is facing south/southwest.

Once out on the water, we paddled along the eastern bank, bringing us into a quiet area where there was another good spot for pulling out a kayak or canoe.  But it wasn't as shady, so we made a good choice by stopping where we did.  (see part one)  Here is a photo of Brody and I in that area:

My guidebook mentioned seeing lots of wildlife on this reservoir, but we weren't so lucky.  We did hear cedar waxwings, crows, chickadees and sparrows (not sure what type.)  But we didn't see any birds.  I'm sure it was due to the motorboats.

The reservoir has some large rocks that may or may not be covered at other times.  We have never been here before, so I can't tell if the water level has been kept near normal by the dams or not.

As I mentioned in part one, this reservoir reminds me a lot of some NY rivers we've paddled on, including the Beaver River. This is a fairly narrow reservoir, making it only as wide as some rivers in the Adirondacks.  It is definitely a pretty place to kayak, with trees right up to the banks of the reservoir.

We paddled south past the put-in to check out the end of Blake Falls Reservoir.  The map shows the reservoir just ending, rather than trickling out, narrowing in size.  So, we were pretty sure one of the "arms" we traveled down would be an abrupt end.  On the way, this triangular-shaped boulder caught my attention:

We took the left hand (eastern) arm to see where it led, but knew we probably couldn't go far.  We had prior warning by a sign on a peninsula that said "Canoe Carry."  Also, I forgot to mention that we saw a number of signs along the reservoir saying "No Swimming."  I did not check into this further since we had no plans to swim, but it's something to keep in mind if you paddle here.  I wonder if it is allowed at the campground?

Squarish boulders lined the bank along this stretch.

Within a few minutes of entering that eastern arm of the reservoir at its southern end, we could see a dam area with gates and a building.  We turned around way before the area just to be on the safe side.  Although I thought the water would be flowing north, this area seemed to be flowing south.  I know nothing of the set-up of these reservoirs, so don't take my word for it! All I am sure of is that the Raquette River flows north.

Here is another shot of intriguing boulders in the water:

We paddled back up to the peninsula and took the other arm of the reservoir south.  There was a long skinny island in the middle of this arm and before we'd paddled halfway down either side (we tried both) we were met with a sign that said "Restricted Area."  So, our exploring of the southern part of the reservoir was over.  We headed back to the put-in.

 Along the way, more boulders, of course.  But I saw something on one that made me pause in my paddling and go over for a closer look.  It was bones.  If they had been fish bones, I wouldn't have given it a thought-- an otter, mink, eagle or osprey could have possibly stopped to eat on the boulder.  But these weren't fish bones. I am not good with bones, so I'm not sure what we're looking at.  My guess is a red fox or some mammal similar in size.  I have wondered if it was hurt and crawled up or something, but probably the best guess is that a turkey vulture, raven or other scavenger brought it to the rock to eat.  Maybe not-- it's just my best theory at the moment!

One more boulder photo for you, then I promise to stop!

This is another one of those photos that just come out looking different than you expected.  Here is Brody checking out a set-back on the southwestern side of Blake Falls Reservoir.  Yes, it was a bit shady, but it actually looks dark in this photo!  And once more, Brody looks superimposed.  Well, it wasn't in the plan, but it's kind of neat, anyway.

I think this is actually out of order and should go before the photo of Brody.. but we'll leave it!  This is the set-back before we entered it.

And this is the view as we approached the boat launch, facing north.  I just love the way the clouds are stacked up, don't you?

Before getting off the water, I was able to get one last shot of the clouds using my zoom.

By the time we got back, the small parking area and roadside was full of trucks and boat trailers as well as a few cars with kayaks or canoes.  It was about 1:30 on a Sunday and it seemed the warmer it got out, the more boats arrived.  As I mentioned in part one, if you want a quiet paddle, try a weekday morning, or very early on a weekend.  Of course, this is summer we're speaking about.  I'm sure it would be much more quiet in the fall or spring, as all of us who paddle in the northeast know.

That's it for my description of Blake Falls Reservoir.  A pretty place to kayak or canoe, but choose your time wisely for a peaceful day.

Thanks for reading and Happy Kayaking!

Blake Falls Reservoir, part one

A couple of weeks ago we decided to try another new kayaking location!  Blake Falls Reservoir is part of a chain of reservoirs on Raquette River between Route 3 and Potsdam.  The Raquette flows north, and these reservoirs include Blake Falls, Rainbow Falls and Five Falls.  We choose Blake Falls because it is narrow compared to the other two, making it seem more like a river than a reservoir.

NEW  I am going to start putting GPS coordinates for each location I blog about.  I'll also be adding the coordinates to my website.  Right now, I'm using Google Maps to accomplish this so the info could be a tiny bit off.  But I found out that my TomTom will give me this information. So any locations we go to from this point forward should have pinpoint accurate GPS coordinates.

Blake Falls Reservoir (the south put-in) is:  44° 28' 5.3472" -74° 45' 48.009"

We used the alternate put-in which is south of the campground where the main put-in is.  We were hoping to find a little more quiet by choosing this one.  Although there is a cement ramp for trailer-ed boats, just to either side is a grassy/sandy/partially rocky area which works fine for those of us with smaller watercraft.  Here is the boat ramp:

It took us a bit longer  to reach the reservoir than I thought it would, so we got a late start.  As you can see in the photos, there were some ripples on the water from the wind.  But it was a warm and sunny day, so we headed out, planning, as always, to enjoy the day.

If you're familiar with some rivers in New York state, the scene above may remind you of them -- Pine- edged waterway with boulders and rocks along the banks.  I thought of the Beaver River first when I looked out at Blake Falls Reservoir.

Brody was intrigued right from the beginning of our paddle.  He's still on the look-out for squirrels and chipmunks or maybe a duck.

The sun was bright, so we strapped on his Doggles for part of the trip:

Unfortunately, less than a half hour into our paddle, we had power boats and fishing boats zooming past us... on their way to where, we didn't understand.  The reservoir ends less than a mile past the put-in and although there was one "arm" on the map, it didn't look like it went far either...  So, we had to share the day with the occasional loud motor and the resulting wake as they went by.  That part is kind of fun-- rocking over the waves.  But that is the only plus for us, personally.  If you want less motors and more quiet, I would try a week day and/or early morning.  We didn't have that choice for this paddle. But if you're looking for a quiet paddle, you'd be more apt to find it then.  In the photo below, the waves are partly from the wind, but also from a passing boat.

I thought this big rock had an interesting shape-- sort of a mushroom-like top. 

 

 Then I thought I saw a face in it-- albeit, someone with low brows or a flat cap down over his eyes-- not to mention a very small, pinched mouth!

 

These flowers were growing nearby.  I looked up the name of these and have already forgotten it... ahhh... Soapwort Genetian!  By the way, I found an interesting site for wildflowers that lets you search by state, and then by color!  So, you go to New York, then select "blue wildflowers in NY" and you'll see thumbnails of all the blue wildflowers-- great for identification!  I am very excited and have bookmarked the page for future reference.  As an aside, I found out that a white "plant" I took photos of years ago because it was so interesting is called an Indian Pipe or Ghost Flower.    Here is the link for the wildflowers in case you're interested:   http://uswildflowers.com/

We paddle up toward a peninsula to have a look around it.  The campground was further up on the left (west side of the reservoir.)  Due to the motor boats, we decided to turn around and head back down on the east side, staying close to the edge (more fun to look at things along the banks anyway.)  When we approached an area across from the put-in diagonally, we were pleased-- there is a wooded area with a place to pull out our kayaks.  It looked like a perfect picnic spot!

Here is where we landed our kayaks-- nice, gradual sandy area:

The woods were level above this area and it looked like a great tent spot, but signs warned that no overnight camping was allowed.  I believe this land is owned by the power company, and is much like the Beaver River Canoe area in that only a few spots are designated for camping.  You are not allowed to camp where ever you please.

From our picnic spot, there was a pretty scene with the woods and the water:

We spread a blanket to sit on while eating our lunch.  Brody was tied to a tree root and did very well, assessing the area and waiting for any treats that might come his way.

With the warmth of the day and the cooling breeze, and the fact that we hadn't heard any motors for a good 20 minutes, we relaxed in the shade after lunch.  Enjoying our surroundings (and, of course, Brody.)

I took this shot looking up from my place on the blanket.  The curve of the trees from this vantage point fascinated me.

I found an almost perfectly round hole in these tree branches/needles as I looked up:

And I thought Brody would look very nice with the sky and the trees behind him, so I took a shot of him from the same vantage point.  Who thinks it looks Photo-Shopped?  It's kind of un-real looking, isn't it?  I'm guessing it's the flatness of the photo-- not much depth perception.  Still, it's a pretty neat shot of Brody, I think.

We whiled away a few more minutes in the shade and took Brody for a short walk under the pines, with layers of pine needles cushioning our steps.  And then it was time to pack up our cooler, don our hats and pdfs and return to the water.  We still had more of Blake Falls Reservoir to explore!

Join me here in a few days for part two.  And Happy Kayaking!