A View from the Water

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A View from the Water
7.18.09

Recently I ran across a new term for park land - a blue way. It is logical that if a green way is a land trail than a blue way is a water trail. Blue ways can be limited to human powered boats such as canoes, kayaks, and row boats, shared with motor boats or my favorite, floated in inner tubes. Paddling a boat on a blue way is a great way to get moving on a hot summer day, enjoy nature and see sites you might not see from land.

The canoe is a simple boat that glides through the water powered by hand. The view from on the water is much different than on land. Aquatic life can be seen up close; turtles, fish, duck, beaver, mink, muskrat. Hungry dragon and damsel flies hover over the water surface using their keen eyes to hunt for food. Button bush and water lily are examples of water dependent plants that grow from the banks and on our water locally.

One advantage of canoeing is the ability to travel in shallow waters and reach quiet coves where larger boats cannot. While in one such cove at the West Branch State Park, I had a two foot long gar fish cruse alongside my canoe looking one-eyed at me. I returned the stare as we glided together for a short time observing this strange fish with his elongated spear like jaw and sharp teeth pointing above the surface of the water.

During trip on the 438,000 acre Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in southern Georgia I saw carnivorous pitcher plants growing among the knees of mature Cyprus trees and alligators and turtles sunning on logs. It took us three days for our party to cross the swamp stopping each night at a chickee, a deck built above the water for camping along the way.

On another memorable canoe trip I saw a moose appear from the dawn mist. He dipped his head, heavy with branched antlers, to eat wetland vegetation in a back pond. This was in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on the border of Minnesota and Canada where only hand powered boats can ply the 1.09 million acre wilderness.

One need not go far to find great places to paddle. Here in Auglaize County we have the Auglaize and St. Marys rivers, the Miami and Erie Canal and Grand Lake St. Marys. These are great blue ways to see local wildlife and change your view of our local landscape.

Come learn the art of paddling a canoe on August 8, 1-3pm with the Heritage Trails Park District and ODNR. Sign up for a canoeing class to be held at 40 Acre Pond north of St. Marys and West of SR 66 on Glynwood Road. Canoes, paddles and life jackets will be provided.

Registration is required, call the Heritage Trails Park District at 419.202.6053 to learn more. The class is for ages 16 and up; youth will need a parent/guardian signature to participate. Officer Martin of the ODNR is our certified American Canoe Association Instructor for the day.

Allison Brady, Executive Director
Heritage Trails Park District of Auglaize County