2 minute read
Back Roads
This week’s Back Roads is the work of The Land Correspondent Tim King. Photos by Jan King. On Point
Some people have a lake shore cabin where they can enjoy the pleasures of life near a lake — and mow the lawn. Others pay handsomely to visit lake side resorts to experience the same pleasures. But visitors to Todd County’s Battle Point Park on Lake Osakis in central Minnesota can experience lake life without having to mow the lawn or pay expensive rental fees.
Advertisement
Battle Point Park is a 10-acre multi-use park jutting out into one of the bays of the 11-mile-long, 6,300-acre Lake Osakis. The lake is considered to be among Minnesota’s top ten fishing lakes. The park, which is owned and maintained by the Todd County Parks and Trails Board, has one of the three public access boat launch sites on the lake plus a large and spacious handicap accessible fishing pier.
But Battle Point Park isn’t just about access to bass, walleyes and crappies. If you’re a birding enthusiast it’s a great place to spot a western grebe. In fact, Lake Osakis is about as far east as this red-eyed long necked bird from the western United States can be seen. From the fishing dock you can also see Forster’s terns, white pelicans, ring billed gulls, and common loons. There are plenty of song birds in the brushy and wooded areas of the park as well.
Osakis, Minn.
Twenty years ago, the powerful wave action from the lake was chewing away the peninsula which makes up a large portion of the park. To stop the shoreline erosion, the Todd County commissioners teamed up with the Todd County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Sauk River Watershed District to stabilize the shoreline with riparian and native plants and, where necessary, rocks to break wave action. Today, the results of that effort are evident in an attractive split rail fence protecting the native and riparian plantings. Following the fence is a grassy path that travels past benches, picnic tables, and grills to the Points’ rocky tip. When there is a strong wind from the south, a visitor can watch the waves crash into foam on the rocks and feel the wind in their face. There may also be a pelican sailing overhead and a speeding bass boat roaring by.
If you’re looking for something a bit less stimulating, the park has a picnic shelter and a first-class children’s playground. But always, no matter what you do, the smell, sound and sight of the lake is there. v
BORE ANYWHERE YOU DON’T WANT TO DIG!
Mike 320-905-8645 • Gene 320-905-8873
