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20210813 – Maumee Bay State Park – Lodge Area Hike

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Date: 08/13/2021 – Distance: 2.0 mi – Elapsed Time: 1.0 hr – Ascent: 75 ft – Descent: 56 ft – Difficulty: Easy

I’m camping at Maumee Bay State Park, and decided to checkout the wetland boardwalk and lodge area on Friday evening. This place is amazing. Make sure you check out the previous post as well.

I started at the Nature Center where the boardwalk starts.
There are a couple miles of boardwalk here.
This pond is in front of the nature center.
Cool sculpture.
There is a Monarch Butterfly hatching facility at the Nature Center. These creatures are amazing.
There’s a nice educational set of panels on the side of the gazebo. They feed on Milkweed.
They have very specific migration routes. The distances they travel is astounding.
The Monarch lifecycle.
They have threats.
The wetland here is awesome.
Heading into the wetland.
Gray Dogwood.
Learn to identify this plant.
Just the beginning.
Swamp White Oak.
Swamp White Oak.
This boardwalk is extensive.
Lots of birds hang out here.
There is a layer of Pennywort on the surface.
Blooming Pennywort.
Unfortunately a good portion of the boardwalk was damaged a few days ago during a storm. I understand, but damnit.
Green Heron.
That looks like a beaver dam.
Look closely and you can see some cool stuff.
Like this Flowering Rush.
And Purple Loostrife.
Or a Blue Heron.
And Lake Erie.
Monkeyflower.
Another Purple Loostrife.
The trail comes out behind the lodge.
The Lake Erie shore is amazing here.
It’s a big lake.
Toward Toledo and Detroit.
Cool lighthouse way out there. It looks like it’s floating above the water.
I continued around the lodge toward the beach.
You can dock at the lodge.
This map is west of the previous one.
There is a sizeable inland lake here.
The beach is huge.
There is an amphitheater at the beach.
They are getting ready for a beach party.
This is the beach concessions area.
The inland lake also has a beach.
Cliff Swallow nests.
This potted sage was in front of the lodge.
Along with this Globe Amaranth.
This trail map is at the lodge and shows all of the trails here.
Water’s Edge is the lodge restaurant.
Icebreaker Lounge is the bar.
Front view of the lodge.
Back at the Nature Center they had this kiosk about Purple Martins.
A nesting box.
And another good kiosk about the area.
The golf course.
And a cool mound. I’ll be back for a hike on this one.

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