Mood for a Day

As I wrote in my previous entry, I spent my Saturday (the first blue-sky day in 2 weeks) taking in the scenery at a nearby lake. The place I was at is called Wazee Lake County Park. It's quite unusual, in that it's a man-made lake formed from an old iron mine.

The Jackson County Iron Mine produced iron from taconite from the 1960s to the 1980s. It is located about 3 miles northeast of Black River Falls. When the market became unviable, the mine closed; and the pit filled up with water. A few years later, the area was reclaimed and turned into a park. It has about 10 miles worth of walking trails and another 10 of biking trails. The lake itself is the deepest in Wisconsin.

One of the interesting activities at Wazee Lake is SCUBA diving. There is a SCUBA shop nearby, and the lake itself has 3 areas specifically for putting-in of divers. It's also a non-motorized lake, but you can canoe it. I talked to a few divers who were coming out of the lake, and they told me that there are HUGE fish in the lake; and that nobody fishes it. That'll change. :) :) :) :)

There is also a very-fine-sanded beach at the east end. From what I understand, during the summer it's supposed to be the local cruise spot for the 20's-or-so year-old set. I haven't had a chance to verify that, yet. :) :) :) :)

There is also a link for the mine with more information and photos of the pit in operation here: http://www.uwrf.edu/~wc01/JacksonFe.html

Anyways, the pictures speak for themselves. It was a beautiful day, as I wrote; and we are in the middle of fall color here. For the most part, the photos show my progress around the lake, counter-clockwise, from the southwest end. One photo (third one down) also shows the clarity of the lake water - in it you can see an old tree that is now underwater. A cool place, and I had a great time there. Enjoy! And please let me know what you think.