This trip report is for canoers and kayakers that want to see where they're going before they go. Please visit Kohne Camera & Photo while on your way. We're a full service imaging lab and camera dealer operated entirely by photo enthusiasts ready to attend every photographic need you have.
Now, a paddling report from Pigeon Lake in Steuben County, Indiana:
Pigeon Lake has a boat ramp built and maintained by the Indiana DNR but you won't see it on your atlas or gazetteer. No swings, no picnic area, no rest rooms, no hot dog stand. It's just a boat ramp basically in the middle of nowhere that will lead you and your boat into a most fabulously serene area.
There are two basins to this lake and that gives it the hourglass shape. Pigeon River feeds the lake from the north then it makes a hairpin turn to the east and heads downstream as Pigeon Creek. A small pond appears on the waterway downstream of the lake just before Route 20.
I've paddled downstream from the lake but it gets to be a bit of a bore as the creek narrows significantly through endless farmland. Upstream is also through farmland but if you can paddle upstream, that means the water is high. If the water is high, so is the current.
Only electric motors are allowed on this lake and there's only the one house; there's no picnic area...you're pretty much guaranteed peace & quiet while here unless you stir up a catfish accidentally while you're passing through the shallows.
You'll almost always see one or two fishermen out on the lake fishing during a weekday. I've not yet seen three fishermen on this lake at once. The place is quiet, not advertised, and it's pretty much wilderness out there even though all the property around it seems to be privately owned.
Unless I'm mistaken, the top picture on the left shows something called a protonotary warbler. They live near water in forested areas. They're quick to fly and difficult to photograph, but plentiful at this site. They're little, so keep your eyes well-peeled if you want to see or photograph them.
This year was the first time I've seen Canada Geese at Pigeon Lake. I'm pretty sure they were just passing through. I accidently startled a group of three when I paddled around a corner near the east end of the lake.
The Great Blue Heron I photographed 50 billion times in 2004 and 2005 does not appear to be at Pigeon Lake this year. Let's hope he or she just moved away. This year features two Great Blue Herons (offspring?) and two Green Herons; that's double the population from last year.
If you are going to photograph from a canoe or kayak, be sure to keep your camera in a dry bag or waterproof case while embarking and disembarking. SLR models, such as the Canon Rebel XT, 20D or 30D, or Nikon D70, D50 or D200 with a 300 or 400mm lens will work quite nicely for this type of work. Otherwise, a Canon S2 or S3 IS, Fuji FinePix 500x-series, or Nikon CoolPix S4 camera will get you similar results at a fraction of the expense and bulk of the SLR models.
To get to Pigeon Lake (the one in Steuben County, not the other one), get yourself onto Route 20 (Central Avenue, in Toledo) and head westward. Or, take the turnpike to the last exit in Ohio and hook up with Route 20 there. About 14 miles over the Indiana line there will be a red caboose on the left side of the road. A guy owns a caboose and put it on his yard. I don't know why (not yet, anyway, but I aim to find out). Turn north at the caboose on County Road 200. Less than a mile up the road is a driveway on the right. Don't go there. That's the driveway to the house. Immediately after the driveway is the DNR public access site. Go there, instead. There's a permanent sign marking the site.
Note: At Pigeon Lake, birds always face to the left. Nobody knows why.
