Round Lake: Good hikes, great critters

Summer is a great time for traveling. While some people may prefer to spend the summer at a theme park, or in some exotic locale in the tropics, there are a great many wonders of the natural world to behold right here in our marvelous state of Idaho. This week, I’ll be highlighting Round Lake State Park.

Much like Farragut State Park’s Lake Pend Oreille, the 58-acre Round Lake is also the result of the Lake Missoula Flood, which occurred at the end of the Ice Age, or Pleistocene epoch, thousands of years ago. When the glacial dam that held back Lake Missoula collapsed, it sent great surges of water flowing westward, where they carved out valleys and canyons, and often left behind lakes and rivers. Since then, Round Lake State Park has become a home for a number of different species of plants and animals you may see if you choose to visit.

To get there, go 7 miles south of Sandpoint on Highway 95 and then two miles west on Dufort Road.

Summer is one of the best times to visit Round Lake State Park because that’s when many of its local wildlife are most active and there are plenty of ways to go out and find them. Many people who visit the park like to walk along the hiking trails. There are at least three hiking trails in Round Lake State Park, and one of them takes hikers right by a beaver lodge. A beaver lodge is the type of home a family of beavers will construct for themselves mostly out of branches, sticks and other wooden objects, along with mud, rocks and other natural items.

You might also see a beaver dam at Round Lake State Park; this structure blocks up the river so a pond forms around the lodge. Predators are less likely to access the beaver lodge when there’s a pond around it, and the higher water level makes it easier for the beavers to get to their favorite trees they like to munch on.

Other animals often seen along the Round Lake State Park hiking trails include black bears, deer and even the park’s resident moose. It’s a good idea to ask a ranger or park worker the best way to behave in case you see black bears or a moose on the trail, as both animals can be dangerous.

You can’t come to Round Lake State Park without enjoying the lake itself. People visiting the park in the summer often go swimming or boating. If you’re quiet enough, boating is a great way to see animals out on the lake itself. Osprey, a bird of prey related to eagles, are often seen plunging into the lake, snatching up trout or perch in their talons before flying off to a nearby tree to eat their fresh-caught meal. Beavers aren’t the only semi-aquatic animals you may see in the park. Be on the lookout for turtles, frogs and muskrats among reeds, grasses, skunk cabbage and water lilies growing near the shore.

Last but not least, birds are especially plentiful in the park. Herons, ducks, grebes and wild geese can be spotted near the water, and perching birds like red-winged blackbirds, robins and ravens are often seen near campgrounds.

All in all, if you like to view wildlife when you swim, boat or go hiking, Round Lake State Park is the place for you to be this summer.