Saylorville Dam on the Des Moines River

Welcome!  If you are following my afternoon wanderings, or jumping in for the first time,thank you for your visit to checkout the remainder of our day below the Saylorville Dam.

My choice to use extra large images is to get you totally immersed in the moment.

Confluence of the Des Moines River and Saylorville Dam Spillway

Saylorville Dam from the  Fishing Pier

Cottonwood Recreation Area Fishing Pier

                                 The Blue Herons of  the Cottonwood Recreation Area

The first blue heron we came across in our adventure of the day was at the pond close to the entrance of the park.

Our ponds and marshes are suffering greatly due to a lack of water...if water remains it is filled with algae.

Driving farther into the park we came to one of the shelters where we decided to get out of the car for a closer look at the river. Our activity disturbed one of the local residents.

We climbed back into the car to move closer to the dam you saw at the top of the post and to another sandbar. 

This heron was the one that gave me an abundance of a bird in motion pictures as it flew closer to me.

The heron above came flying from the group of trees across from the fishing pier. I attempted to catch the heron while it perched in the tree, but I have yet to be able to provide an image for which I approve.
Our State Department of Natural Resources provides a weekly report to fisher people. The one below came out a couple of weeks ago when I originally started this post.

This may be of interest to local individuals-

Saylorville Reservoir

Channel Catfish - Excellent: Good size channel cats are being caught drifting cut baits.  The old river channel north of the mile long bridge is a good starting point.  White Bass - Good: The white bass are active are can be caught around the Cherry Glen and Sandpiper areas as well as the west side of the lake.  Some of the best action has come by trolling small lipless crankbaits in shad colors, along with small flashy spoons and twister tails.

 

Reservoir fishing continues to be very good to excellent right now for white bass, wipers, and channel catfish. Try fishing early in the morning or late in the evenings when fish are most active.  For more information on central Iowa lakes and rivers contact Ben Dodd or Andy Otting at  515-432-2823 .

As we hopped back into the car for our exit from the park, and escaping the increasing heat, we saw some young fishermen carrying heavy duty fishing poles down to the river. I speculated to Hubby that they would be going after the channel catfish most likely lying at the bottom of the river close to the edge of  the sandbar immediately before us...

My hope is to share a glimpse of the opportunities available for in-state or to out of state visitors,or inspire you to checkout your local wildlife sanctuaries wherever you live...

Cottonwood Recreation Area

The Cottonwood Recreation Area was our third and final stop in our few hours spent checking out the lake and the river.

In our years together,Hubby and I have shared this park area the most with other people. However, we haven't been here for years.Passed by many times, but always committed time wise...today was different.

Before the floods,1993,2008, etc...etc.., the banks along the river were covered with big stately trees, wonderful shade for late afternoon picnics.

Today, we saw a lot of exposed sandbars due to low river levels.

Hubby scaled down the rip-rap onto the sandbar to explore, while I headed over to the fishing pier.

On my way to the pier I checked out the story board before spending most of my time taking pictures of the birds fishing the shallows.

Stop back soon and I'll share more about our relaxing day by the rolling water just below the Saylorville Dam.

Oak Grove Recreation Area

After finishing our picnic at Shelter house #1,we left the Cherry Glen Recreation Area and headed up NW Polk City Dr./HWY 415 to our next stop at Oak Grove Recreation Area.

The Ranger station was closed so we headed down the hill towards our objective - the water's edge.
As we left the Ranger Station the Picnic Area was immediately off to our left. Going down the hill further we approached the camping area off to our right, approximately a 1/4 of a mile from the beach at this access point.

We had started seeing sailboats gliding swiftly across the water's surface at the first lake access...the breeze was keeping the sails furled and captains on their toes. Reaching our second access at Oak Grove we were being met by several craft that had come north as we did, following the shoreline.

This picture has two boats far enough away from one another to be comfortable, but a third boat came within feet of the closest to us, headed in the opposite direction. I would say from our vantage point that those two boats  had a "close enough" encounter as they passed, one slightly tilted with underside exposed to the camera.

One of the outstanding features of Saylorville Lake happens to be the Mile Long Bridge west of Polk City.

Most of the time the bridge is a pleasant trip, but like all situations that could crop up in a twinkling of an eye; warnings are posted on the bridge to make drivers aware of potential hazards, such as wind gusts, and of course during the winter, icy conditions.

I have lived in the area long enough to have witnessed water up to the road decking on many occasions. When  I must pass over it with high winds, and water, I keep my eyes focused on the end, and my hands on the steering wheel. Once in a while I try to get a picture without focusing.Oh,and the results usually end up in the recycle bin to be tossed away in the next delete phase.

Come on along with Hubby and me.Time to be off to the next destination,the Cottonwood Recreation Area.

Check back and see what we found as we head in to another part of the Saylorville Reservoir territory to watch and listen for mother nature's treasures...