Lake Hiawatha

The shoreline offers up a view almost completely unspoiled by it's urban surroundings

This is a beautiful little lake located just north of Lake Nokomis off of Minnehaha Parkway, Hiawatha's shoreline has been carefully restored with a nice variety of indigenous aquatic flora. And, with the exception of a few man made features, anyone on the water can't help but notice that you can truly be "away from it all," even in the middle of the city.

There is no launch ramp here. Forget about putting in your day sailer or your fourteen foot Alumacraft and trolling motor. Whatever you have, you have to carry it down to the little beach on the east side. It's a bit of a hike, too, a good seventy five yards from the street IF you can find a parking spot close by. This is a lake for light watercraft.

A launcher is often handy, but  absolutely necessary for Hiawatha and other lakes where you must walk down to the shore

A roof rack or a pickup truck saves the need for a trailer and makes parking easier. Note the ramp under the launcher.

It was good to see three kayaks and a canoe on the water. At this time of the year, I seldom see more than one or two on the same lake at the same time. I was the only row boat, of course, and as usual, I was stopped by a few people asking questions and offering up some nice compliments. I took one well wisher for a ride.

 Minnehaha Creek flows from Lake Nokomis into Hiawatha then on to Minnehaha Falls

Hiawatha is part of a water shed connected by Minnehaha creek which enters and exits on the south end. Other features include a golf course on the Northwest side and a small playground and recreation center. 

An interesting sculpture titled, "the Listening Vessel" by creator Craig Davis is located at the center. It is a concave parabola carved into sizable piece of granite which was designed to amplify the natural sounds of the wind and waves and shorebirds.
 

 A little bit of the golf course can be seen on the north side 

Originally the area was a 52 acre swamp until the city purchased it, dredged it into a thirty three foot deep lake, and stocked it with fish. Look for black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin, carp, golden shiner, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkin seed, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead and yellow perch. Some fish consumption guidelines have been placed on the bluegill and northern pike. Check with the DNR for details.

I did not notice any signage about invasive species, but I would expect that since Hiawatha is connected to Nokomis which has eurasian milfoil and mussels, the warning should be present. I cleaned my boat anyway.