SCRIPT:
You’re listening to Parks and Landmarks, an exploration of the underrated, outdoors. I’m Sean Bull.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: one of the best ways to explore Madison is to get out on a boat. So much of the way we live here is defined by how the lakes squeeze our land, and it can be hard to fully appreciate that until you look from the lakes’ perspective.
If you don’t personally own a boat, there are a few ways to do this. There are rental businesses on Monona, Mendota and Wingra, which afford anyone the opportunity to take a canoe or paddleboard for a try. I’ve done this, it’s a lot of fun, but there are limitations. Of course, you need the money to rent in the first place, and some level of athletic ability, but there’s also less obvious drawbacks inherent in this approach. If you were to rent a kayak on one of the big lakes, I think you might find yourself hugging the shore a bit. There’s nothing wrong with this. After all, the shore is where all the interesting stuff is. But if you saw something on the opposite side of the lake, and wanted to check it out, you would probably take the route straight across the middle. And that’s where things might get nerve-wracking, there’s a lot going on in the middles of Lakes Monona and Mendota.
The middle of the lake is the domain of the powerboat. It’s where people, tube, ski, and generally cruise around at speeds a kayak can’t match. It’s not dangerous, really. The boaters of Madison are generally courteous to craft of all sizes, and will give a paddler a wide berth. But how comforting is that to someone who isn’t out on the lakes much, someone just renting for the day? In this situation, pardon the phrase, but you’d be forgiven if you felt a little out of your depth.
A more accessible way to get out on the lakes is to simply wait for them to freeze over. Climate change notwithstanding, every lake in Madison freezes solid for at least a couple months out of the year. This means that anyone who can so much as walk, crawl, or roll themselves to the lakeshore can just keep going, and the ice will bear them to a view of the city previously reserved for geese.
But this, too, is less than perfect. For one thing, it’s cold. The same person who might find it hard to justify a sixty dollar boat rental might also not have the right winter clothes to go hang out on a sheet of ice for an hour. Obviously, the kind of weather that freezes a whole lake is bitterly chilly, but in the middle of a lake, the lack of obstructions also means the wind is at its absolute worst. For anyone who can’t adequately bundle up, it’s just not a great environment for sightseeing.
Because of these reservations, there is only one way for everyone to get out on the Madison lakes. It takes no physical effort, costs next to or actually nothing, and you’ll even learn something along the way.
Madison School and Community Recreation has been conducting boat rides for the last forty years, and still, I think the service is a bit underappreciated. Despite being run by the school district, these rides truly are for everyone. Several times a week, you can find specially-made pontoon boats, making loops out from Tenney, Warner, and Olbrich Parks, as well as one of the piers at the UW Memorial Union. These boats are no-frills affairs, a flat deck, populated with plastic lawn chairs, rather than the built in couches you might expect. The nice thing about this decidedly impermanent seating is that it’s adjustable. By taking a chair away, these boats can accommodate a wheelchair better than anything else on the water.
For just five dollars cash, you’re treated to an hour-long loop around a section of one of the lakes. Along the way, the two volunteer crew members, usually retired folks from the area, serve as tour guides, pointing out interesting things along the shore, and providing context for what you’re seeing.
(Clip of Tour)
That’s the voice of Katie Mnuk, one of the volunteers with the MSCR pontoon program. As a First Mate, she handles most of the actual tour guide duties. On some of her tours, Terry Walker fills the role of Captain, navigating the pontoon around its route. I talked with both of them earlier this week about their experience as MSCR volunteers. As a disclaimer for any audiophiles, we did this interview on the lake. I did my best to minimize the wind noise, but you can still hear it coming from the surrounding trees. Also, we couldn’t escape a constant stream of landing jet planes. These pontoon tours are many things, but serene is never quite one of them.
(Interview with Katie and Terry)
If you’re a person who’s at all interested in seeing Madison from a different perspective, the pontoon program is for you. Rides run from the beginning of June, to the end of September, and cost five dollars, but even that cost can be waived. You can find more information on rides, or how to become a volunteer, at the MSCR website.
If you’d like to suggest a topic for Parks and Landmarks to cover, please send it my way, at sean.bull@wortfm.org. Tell me about your favorite underrated spot outdoors, or whatever you feel is related. This segment’s title is intentionally broad, so just go for it. I’d love to hear from you guys. Again, that’s s-e-a-n dot b-u-l-l at w-o-r-t-f-m dot org. For WORT News, I’m Sean Bull.
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