Our “anniversary trip”…Part 3…”so many lakes…”

I believe I left off at one of our favorite spots,  Rainbow Shores Hotel.  We found it quite by accident a few years ago,  looking for a place to stay for the night.  We happened to see their sign on Route 3, between Sandy Pond Corners and Port Ontario, and decided to go investigate.  Another sign at the end of Rainbow Shores Road pointed down a dirt road, which appeared to head back into the woods along the lake into nowhere.  We looked at each other, “oh sure…there’s really a place to stay back here”…when after about a mile the road ended in a large sandy, grassy open area at the Hotel.   It’s a really beautiful spot, sitting on a bluff above Lake Ontario.  The owner, Linda, maintains a number of flower gardens around the grounds, and old-fashioned lawn chairs keep vigil over the shore, waiting to take a load off tired travelers’ feet.   There’s a large outdoor deck where you can dine, sitting amidst large pots, hanging baskets, and window boxes full of flowers.  Summer’s sunsets provide an unparalleled backdrop for polishing off one of their great dinners.   That night, we had the privilege of experiencing a marvelous Lake Ontario thunder and lightening storm most of the night.  Whatever the weather was for Monday, it just didn’t matter.

Monday morning indeed turned out NOT to be a paddling day…very warm, very humid, dark ominous skies, and a BIG breeze out of the northwest.   A perfect “road trip” day!  We set out to do some reconnaissance around the Indian River Wildlife Management area and other assorted small lakes we had spotted on the map.    Our path took us through Watertown, another favorite spot for our stop and shop travelling style.  They have one of the biggest Eckerd’s stores you’ve ever seen (they sponsor our favorite north-country PBS   stations), and if they don’t have it, you don’t need it!  There’s an enormous sporting goods department; hunting, fishing, camping equipment.   I bought an ultralight fishing rod (it has turned out to be a real sweetheart!) and a couple of new 00 Mepps lures, just to make sure I keep catching those small fish! 

From Watertown, we headed north on Route 11/26 to the town of Philadelphia, then west on Route 26 to Theresa.   Theresa is a really pretty little town; the Indian River winds through it, and there’s a small dam and hydro facility.  Turning up Red Lake Road just outside of town at the top of the hill, you’ll find two launches suitable for small boats or canoes: one on the Indian River, and one on Red Lake.  Most of the launches in this area are restricted to boats with less than 10hp motors…just our style!   We backtracked down to Moon Lake Road and found a Fishing Access site on Moon Lake.  There are large rocks to prevent launching boats from trailers, but a canoe would work quite well.  A few cottages populate the shoreline, but not enough to make the lake overly busy.

We continued rambling north on Route 22 to Payne Lake. There’s a very well maintained DEC launch, with nicely packed gravel and big parking areas; this lake is also restricted to small boats only. There are wide areas on both sites of the launch where you can stand (or park a lawn chair) and fish.  The day had brightened, so we decided to put the canoe in and try out my new rod; we were the only boat on the lake.   We saw a few fish, had some taps, but no takers.  Payne is a gorgeous little lake, surrounded by sheer rock cliffs.    A dozen hawks were enjoying the thermals, coasting high above the cliffs, and the sweet fragrance of the evergreens on that hot day will be a fond memory when the winter winds start to blow.

South on Route 22, we found Muskellunge Lake.  There’s no access from public roads, but we spotted a sign that said “Gene’s Camps – Nature’s Fishbowl”.  Gene’s road was barely one lane, winding through a field, into the woods, and ending at the shore of a lake that with one look, made you want to stay.   You can launch a small boat there for a nominal fee.  There are a number of camps available for rental, with a variety of sizes and facilities:  some with indoor toilet, hot/cold shower, some without, a couple with decks overlooking the lake. The most recently built camp was really nice, with a kitchen with electric range, oven, sitting rooms both upstairs and downstairs, and bedrooms upstairs. The rental prices are reasonable, and it would be a great place to savor some peace and quiet.  We looked through some of their fishing photo albums; the fishing looks outstanding...bass, perch, crappies, bluegills, muskies, and lots of them. We’ll be back.

Leaving  “Gene’s”, we turned north on New Connecticut Road, heading toward Lake of the Woods.  The map indicates a shortcut via Hanson Bridge Road, but we discovered that the bridge is no longer there, so we continued on up a couple more miles to Route 3.   We picked up River Road, which turns into Burns Road at “Chapel Corners”.  Spotting a DEC sign, we followed a gravel and dirt road about 1 mile to a very usable launch.  It was another <10hp launch limit, but there were quite a number of cottages along the shore with larger boats and many personal watercraft.  It would probably be a good small boat lake during the week, but had the look of being “busy” on weekends.  The launch area afforded a nice picnic spot, where we had a delicious lunch…a sub, great potato salad, and baked beans from the P&C store’s deli in Watertown.

So many lakes, so little time!  If you check out the map, you’ll find many more that we didn’t have a chance to take a look at:  Butterfield, Mud, Clear, Hyde, Grass, Yellow, Crystal, Sixberry…you get the idea.  Check out the Gazetteer, page. 92.

I dozed most of the way back to Rainbow Shores (Ethan always insists I put my seat back, grab a pillow and relax…not that I’m a front-seat driver or anything…), rallying just in time for our Happy Hour stop at Carnsie’s Irish Wigwam Marina and Resort on North Pond.  You can find it by turning west on County Route 15 at Sandy Pond Corners.   Carnsie’s is also another fun spot, with great food (try their seafood casserole sometime!) , a friendly pub, hotel rooms, and a good view of the Pond.   We spent the night there for Ethan’s birthday this spring, with the intent to test our new waders in the Salmon River.  Remember March 4^th??   Blizzard???  Just try to get home??? But…that’s another story for another time.

The day had cleared nicely, and we dined on the deck back at Rainbow Shores, watching the sun become one with the horizon, backlighting the evening sky.  Ethan had the broiled platter:  a lobster tail, scallops, shrimp, haddock.  My choice was the broiled haddock, and each meal was seasoned and cooked to perfection.  They had one of my favorites on the salad bar:  baby peas in sour cream. Yum!  Dinner was a perfect ending to a perfect day.   If you’ve never taken the time to watch the sun disappear into Lake Ontario, you’ve truly missed something special in life, especially over one of Rainbow Shores’ dinners.

Next time…on the road to Stillwater!

We hope you visit  our web site for information and photos of our “ramblings”:   http://irwinhome.freeservers.com