On a mild morning in the first week of April, I drove south on Highway 5A to Trapp Lake.    there is a track which leads to the lakeshore 1.3 km down the lake.    A tiny sandy strip makes a good launch point for the lake.    Since a paddle of the whole lake is about 10.5 km, I usually paddle half of the lake and paddle the other half later in spring.   On this day, I paddled the southern half of the lake.

Trapp is not a fishing lake and it is rare to see any boats on the water.    The highway is on one side and grassland hills rise up for the entire length of the lake.   In spite of the occasional loud truck on the highway, there were lots of birds on or by the lake a pair of bald eagles above a nest, ducks and geese.    I heard meadowlarks, magpies, and blackbirds.   On other days I have seen wildlife on the east side.

Trapp Lake is a good choice for spring paddling.  The ice clears off early, it is easy to get to, and we can paddle continuously up and down the lake.     It is a muddy, alkaline lake that is less pleasant in summer when algae multiplies and the lake levels drop.   In most years I paddle the lake twice in spring and then I kayak the higher lakes in summer.