BOWEN LAKE

Located on Main Street just north of Boyd Parkway (US RT 24) this trail takes you full circle around Lake Bowen. It’s a small lake so it only takes about 7 minutes to walk around. Four laps gave me my 30 minutes. The trail is not paved (except for a short portion) but is more of a gravel road that’s embedded into the ground. In wet weather it would obviously not be as good as pavement, but would be much better than a trail in the woods. If you take the counter clockwise route the lake will be to your left. A nice looking well-kept lake that usually attracts some visitors for fishing or to walk their dog. I’ve never fished the lake and frankly it appears too small and public to contain any fish worth catching but there is a sign posting limits on crappie, bass, and walleye. Usually there is a family or grandpa bringing the kids to bobber fish off of the bank. There is a pavilion just to the right of the beginning of the trail and occasionally there will be a group making use of it for a picnic. To your right will be farmland for the first half and US 24 for the last half. It’s an open trail with virtually no shade or shelter from the wind. Open skies best describes the scenery. Although there is some distance from the highway, you can still hear the traffic which I regard as a negative. The beginning and ending of the circle is separated by the gravel parking lot which must be crossed to complete the route.

There is a Little Johnny porta potty and as I mentioned, a pavilion. The entrance to the lake is a gravel road that is barely wide enough for two vehicles and sometimes has some deep potholes. I’ve never tried, but very wet or snowy weather might make the entrance difficult.

DIRECTIONS FROM THE SQUARE: North on Main Street. Turn left immediately after crossing US 24.

DRIVE TIME: Less than 5 minutes