An Outdoorsman's Journal

Wood and Dexter County's Park and Campground

Hello friends,

   I live about 25 miles from Dexter Lake which is located in Wood County near Pittsville. I pass by it on highway 80 or 54 quite often and have actually had feelings of guilt for not knowing more about it as in canoeing, camping and fishing. This week along with my 4-year-old golden retriever Red, I spent 3 days at this fantastic campground and a lot of it was on the water as I tried to catch some crappie.

   Monday, May 4th
   High 77, low 34

   Lots to say as usual, like when I left home all I was wearing was shorts and had the air conditioning on in my truck. Though I had long pants and shirts packed I didn’t bring outer wear and that would be a bit of a bummer. I was hoping to have a water site on the 300 acre Dexter Lake which is filled by the Yellow River so my canoe would be at camp and ready to go and that was no problem as I was camping off season and during the week.
   As I was building camp a couple from Vesper walked by and I would also speak with them the following day. They make the daily drive and walk what is a 5.25-mile trail and there are two others. This campground was created in 1962 and has 99 sites, plus an area for atv camping and three areas for group camping. The thing that would really impress me is that it is vast, covering 1000 acres for the entire park and the feeling that I had was kind of like going back to the 70’s where everyone had space.
   After building camp I launched my canoe and Red and I had 5 hours of daylight left and I had high hopes of figuring out the crappie. My main tactic would be crappie minnows, a 1/64th ounce black hair jig, and a bobber.
   I was a little short on the anchor situation, so I used my trailer hitch with a 2-inch ball. I only landed 2 crappie, and they were both small but could have caught and kept a limit of 6-8 inch bluegill.
   While I was fishing a cold spell blew in from the north and I would realize that I should have bought more clothes and a heater for my tent.

   Tuesday, May 5th
   High 52, low 29

   I have to admit, I did not have enough heat in my tent and it kept me awake much of the night. On the other hand, I was so excited to fish and explore, that I was on the water at 7:00 this morning, no food. caffeine or warm clothes and there was a solid north wind. I fished 3 places where I did last night with minimal success and then went for about a 1 mile journey where I was able to get out of the wind, set my anchor and I caught some crappie and real pretty bluegill.
   Cold spells are bad news for shallow water fishing and this trip would be no exception but 6 hours after leaving camp I paddled back with 5 crappie, 3 gills and a perch for my effort. The journey back was into the wind, and it was more physical than I liked. Next week if the coho have migrated to Port Washington on Lake Michigan, I will be there in this same canoe. Today my hands went kind of numb after a while bulldogging into the wind and that was a bit concerning.
   After a world class nap at camp I fished close to camp and found the crappie and really enjoyed myself. Though it is chilly, I am acclimatized and coming up with new ideas on how I could spend some quality time at this park. I have been writing this column since ‘89 and folks I want to tell you, Dexter Park and Campground is very cool.
   The following day it was even colder, but I was on top of my game. In the end I kept a mess of crappies and bluegill, also a snapping turtle which can be a chore to unhook and release while in a canoe and my local buddies told me that that once this cold spell ends, the fishing will be fantastic.
   When I went home, I had spent 20 hours in a squatting position in my canoe and most parts of me were in pain and all parts of me were cold, the woodstove and a hot bath made it all better!

   Sunset