Yesterday and the day before, Dave and I had one of our adventures to the lake a few miles from our home. I was under the impression that to even get within half a mile of the water, you had to fork over $$ to a park ranger. Dave and I are always looking for cheap or free activities, and sadly we assumed that going to the lake (as dirty and disgusting as it may be) didn't fit into either category.
Oh, foolish me! Dave had a feeling he could find a way to get to the beach, and I didn't believe it. But the other night we went for a drive and randomly ended up right there at the edge of the beach! It was like a swamp/wetlands area, inhabited heavily by dragonflies, birds, various other bugs, and mosquitoes, of course. But despite the setting sun and misquito clouds, we found a little beach and went out to play for a while.
I have to be honest. It isn't the most beautiful lake as far as trash and general grossness are concerned. But the water is blue ( most of the time) and the plantlife is lush and it is calm to stand out there on the beach. Dave and I would love to come back with a boat (haha, like we have one!) or raft and just paddle out into the middle of the lake from this beach. Well, then again, it might be worth it to pay to get into a part of the beach that isn't so dirty, but oh well.
(We came back the next day when it was earlier in the day. On our way there, we passed some adorable horses and I couldn't help but photograph them in all their majesty.)
We visited the lake over the weekend, and had a delicious picnic on the shore. We noticed some guy out in the water near the reeds, and didn't think much of it until we heard a few gunshots. I realized then that it was duck hunting season. We didn't stay much longer... I didn't really feel like getting shot would be a good way to spend the weekend.
