I had been here before.
It was April. 2004. I was hiking on the trail around Harrison Lake when I saw a Great Blue Heron for the first time. It was sitting at the waters edge, barely visible through the trees.
I went off the trail and crunched through some sticks and crushed through dead leaves. Long before I could get a shot of this great bird, it flew away because of the noise I was making. I remember thinking, "If only I had a kayak or something; I could approach this bird from the water, quickly and quietly."
That was three years and four kayaks ago. Now, photographing the Great Blue Herons is just a normal thing to do. In fact, I approached one just a minute or two after launching my boat at Harrison Lake today. They'll let a person get very close to them from the water at this place. You want to photograph a heron from the woods? Not so likely.
The boat launch at Harrison Lake is within a quiet neighborhood. It's not all houses on this lake but it is populated here and there.
To the left is a bridge that holds a county road and just after that the water appears to peter out. To the right is camping, a few wild areas, a fully populated beach, and more. This lake is all of 100 acres so you can go all around it in a couple of hours. There's a tributary that appears promising but it doesn't really go anywhere. Organized childlike squeals were coming from just after the tunnel so I decided to head back once I was through. I think it's a dead end anyway.
The Canada Geese along the tributary are a bit nervous yet quite familiar with people in hand-propelled boats in this area; besides, they're busy eating all the time so you can photograph them all you want.
You might bring your own boat here or rent a paddle boat or canoe when the rental office is open. If you bring your own, only electric motors are allowed here. Did I mention a beach? There might even be a LifeGuard.
I'd call this a family place. There are restrooms here (these are probably more desireable in the winter when pit sewage is frozen and the flies are hibernating or dead), there are plenty of people around, certainly there's a drinking fountain somewhere or another, campsites are available for dozens, and the park is pretty well-marked on the roads surrounding. Harrison Lake is a fabulous place for families of all shapes and sizes.
I saw two dog otters swimming back & forth in the shallows on the north edge of the lake and I caught one of them with my camera.
All things considered, this is not my kind of place, at all; however, if you have a family and want some good, safe recreation at little cost, I say go to Harrison Lake State Park. It was good to see the inspiration for my summertime hobby over the last few years from the water. I had other places to go today but I just had to see what this place held. Now I know and can move on. After all, I got a heron picture.
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2006 Trip Reports
2007 Trip Reports
Kohne Camera & Photo
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