Three Mississippi lakes above Dalhousie Lake

This year after getting back from summer in PEI, I continued exploring the upper Mississippi River. I decided to focus on the section of the Mississippi River between Dalhousie and Crotch Lakes. There are four medium lakes (and a few other small ones) in this 15 km section of the river. The four lakes going upriver from Dalhousie are Stump, Izatt, Miller, and King Lakes. This blog post will cover the first three; King Lake will have to wait for another year.

Stump Lake (10.5km track; Oct 4th, 2020)

Stump Lake was explored on Oct 4th by kayak (Widgeon) on a relatively warm overcast day, making the fall colours stand out beautifully.  I enjoyed paddling the circumference of Stump Lake with all its islands, channels, rocky shores, bays, and wetlands. Stump Lake is mostly undeveloped and therefore feels a bit remote in most areas of the lake. The bottom of Stump Lake has a small hydroelectric dam (High Falls). Below High Falls is a short 1 km section of the river before it goes into the west end of Dalhousie Lake. Stump Lake is now by far my favourite lake on the Mississippi for a day paddle. On the next trip to Stump Lake, I’ll have to check out the fishing before giving it a 10/10!

Fall colours - Stump Lake

High Falls (OPG hydro station)

Stump Lake scenery & Widgeon kayak

Izatt Lake (8.0km track; Sep 24th, 2020)

The next lake, Izatt, is directly connected to Stump Lake by going under the CR36 bridge. Izatt Lake is a bit more developed than Stump Lake – especially the northern part along CR36. Izatt is still a lovely lake to explore with its many channels, islands, wetlands, and streams. The western channel is reachable by going under the Carson Trail road bridge. This more remote area is quite scenic and feels more isolated.  At the end of this channel is a beautiful little stream flowing into Izatt Lake -- McLaren Depot Snye stream/waterfall. On my way back, I did photograph a group of Painted Turtles enjoying some late season solar energy in the first southern channel from the CR36 bridge.

Stump and Izatt Lakes are accessible at the public ramp off CR36 – next to a floatplane dock.  It’s an excellent launch spot with lots of parking, and amazingly it has a well-maintained outhouse.

Launch for Stump & Izatt Lakes

Carson Trail bridge, Izatt Lake

Midland Painted Turtle quartet, Izatt Lake

Miller Lake (8.1km track; Sep 25th, 2020)

The next medium size lake upriver is Miller Lake, which can be accessed on CR509. The Miller launch point is also great – no outhouse, but it does have a picnic table and lots of parking.  I distinguish the lake part above the bridge (west) as Upper Miller and the east side as Lower Miller Lake. Miller Lake is not overly developed and makes for a nice relaxing paddle with its rocky shores, rapids, and wetland areas. At the west end of upper Miller Lake, there’s a portage trail for going upriver around a section of rapids. It would be nice to try the portage someday and see if Otter Lake and Kings Lake are easily reachable. Kings Lake is about 4.3 km upriver through some more rapids, small lakes/ponds (e.g. Otter), and some narrow channels.

The east end of Lower Miller lake also has rapids with a portage that should get you into Izatt Lake. Miller Lake would be great to paddle again in the spring season when the wetlands and creeks are more navigable.

Upper Miller Lake, west end

Miller Lake, nice and calm!

Lower Miller Lake, east end

The next lakes to explore further up the Mississippi River are Kings Lake and Crotch Lake. The small Otter Lake would also be fun to check out but looks pretty hard to reach!

Starry False Solomon's Seal

Old ring in the rock, Lower Miller L.

For more details on nature sightings, click here for Izatt Lake.

For more details on nature sightings, click here for Miller Lake.