Month: <span>July 2014</span>

Lake Makepeace, New Jersey, www.thesanguineroot.com

ONE OF THE MOST REMOTE PLACES IN NEW JERSEY. HOURS OF QUIET AND SOLITUDE AND ASTOUNDING BEAUTY!

This place was found by looking at a satellite map of NewJersey. Looking for a nice peaceful lake to canoe around, a place to park and launch and not to far from Philly. This place is close to the Atlantic City Expressway, perhaps close enough to make it seem undesirable, but it is so dis-connected from it that isn’t relevant. Â Too shallow for most fishing, no beaches or facilities and remotely accessed from bumpy dirt roads, this lake is far away and quiet. Â We did alot of off-road 4×4 excursions around the lake on some very dodgy dirt roads with huge ruts and puddles, hills and unknown turns. At one point the Subaru nearly got bogged down in muck but anticipating the situation, the laws of physics were employed immediately and speed and momentum were key to the propulsion needed to again reach dry land. This ‘road’ got so overgrown that we had to turn around and the same methods of speed and momentum were utilized to again pass through the unthinkable muddy mucky puddle miles away from civilization. A fun driving experience! Once we found a suitable place to drop the canoe in the water it was a very serene and quiet afternoon/evening.

Makepeace Lake, New Jersey. www.thesanguineroot.com

We paddled through a dense thicket of grasses and lilypads and out onto the open waters. There was a nice breeze, no mosquitos, blackflies or any other pest the whole time we were out. The sun required lotion and hats.

The lake is sizable, shallow and green, with lots of lily-pads, birds and some interesting Islands with Atlantic White Cedars.

This looks like a Beaver construction.

We drove from Philly about an hour and 45 minutes and dropped the canoe in the water from a convenient parking area we saw from the satellite view. The rest was a breeze. Â We enjoyed the cool water and a proliferation of plants and trees along the shorelines, including blooming Cranberries, Swamp Azaleas, Pitcher plants and sundews. The air was an enchanting fresh mix of the scents from the Azaleas, the waters and the trees.

Oswego Lake, New Jersey, www.thesanguineroot.com

The blueberries pictured below, we ate them and they were bursting with flavor. If you want to taste a place, this is the way to do it.

Below, the blooming Cranberry Bushes.

And, below, the Pitcher Plant, blooming away.

And the sundews, below.

We slowly canoed along the edge of the lake, botanizing and birding as well as picnicking. It is a beautiful place and we wanted to take it all in, plant by plant, view by view. The evening light just got better and better!

Above and below, a field of Pitcher plants, as far as the eye could see! What a magnificent and memorable sight! Our slow meandering canoe ride has Â its benefits!