Bangs Lake, Wauconda

This time of year adds another factor onto paddling....daylight. An after work paddle is a great way to end the day. Relieve some stress and wind down before heading home. But there is no time for a big trip. I don't mind paddling into the dark, but a lot of the parks close at sunset or dusk. So, it isn't so much a problem of being on the water, it is more of a concern about the truck in the LOT!

With the dissipating light at the end of the day, I have found myself looking for smaller areas to paddle. I have been hitting some of the local lakes that are tucked around the area. One of them is Bangs Lake in Wauconda, IL.

Bangs Lake is a pretty popular lake and it is surrounded by homes. You are not going to get the 'nature' feel you do of a lake in the middle of nowhere, but sometimes paddling home lined lakes is more interesting. You get to see a little taste of someone else's life. For me, that taste makes me jealous and dreamy. I would love to live on a lake like this. Drop the canoe in, paddle whenever I want.....and not have to worry about getting back to the park district parking lot before the gates close..lol

There are a lot of pontoon boats and power boats on this lake. I have heard that the lake is no wake until 10am and then it is open boating. I was out on a Tuesday evening and there were maybe 5 boats out there. I caught some wake from a wakeboarder, but it was nothing that I couldn't handle. I realize that I am a small boat out with wake setters, so I know my place. There are also a ton of kayaks and canoes around though. One apartment complex had kayak parking all along the beach. It was like being back at Canoecopia!

Once the few power boats would pass, the water was very calm. There was a good breeze when I was out, but it wasn't anything that effected much. The lake is an easy paddle. You can stay in the 'no wake' all the way around and not have to worry about hitting bottom. There were a few times when I threw some weeds in the boat with the paddles though.

The highlight of any paddle trip is the sunset. If you can work a sunset into a trip, it makes the trip that much better. It is always the cherry. I paddled right into the setting sun as I came around the north side of the lake. It was a perfect end to the day.

History Alert!

Bangs Lake was used in this scene from the original Blues Brothers movie. If you look real hard, you may recognize the beach while out there!

I parked at Cook Park off Main Street (old rand road), but a park district personnel told me that parking was also allowed at the small park to the south of Cook Park. That park gets you right up to the lake.