I no longer fish and I don’t own a boat, but even I know of a nice little place south of Bismarck that used to be really good for both: Beaver Bay, where Beaver Creek meets the once-mighty Missouri. A few days ago I had an opportunity to blast down there on the motorcycle, so I paid the place a visit to see if things are still as bad as I feared. They are. That grassy area across the road from the sign? That should be water.
This used to be shore line, as you can see. It is reinforced with rocks, but now all those rocks do is bake in the sun. I had no problem finding a camping spot in which to stop and drink the water I’d brought. This is a great campground and recreation area…it’s too bad there’s no water to draw people here. I did see a couple of campers, but for the most part this place was a ghost town.
You can’t even SEE any real water from the boat dock; just a little flow of creek that’s cut its way through to the river along a winding path. I can’t imagine when the last time a boat was even loaded or unloaded on this dock; the Army Corps of Engineers has mismanaged the upper Missouri system for so long, it would be hard to guess.
Being a man of appetite, I was especially distraught that Bosch’s Bayside had closed. This was my favorite place to stop in for a bacon double cheeseburger…and it’s closed. I believe it closed around this time last year, but I can’t be sure. Who knows what could happen if the lake ever comes back…but for now, there’s just no way a place like this can survive. It’s sad. Maybe if they were pushing barges across the river, the Corps would listen to them…but I doubt it.
The natural way to follow up all this investigatin’ was to jet over to Linton and grab a pizza at the Hot Spot pizza place. This is a typical small-town restaurant: video games unplugged, Bismarck radio playing, locals hanging out or passing through for ice cream. I talked to one older fella briefly about how warm it is in a full leather suit on a sunny day, then had a little homemade pizza and cranked up the iPod.
This drive is one of my all time favorites…I just wish there was a happier story to tell at the end of the road. Lake Oahe and the are to the north of it are hurting badly…so badly, in fact, that the Corps is actually responding in trying to bring the water levels up. That means, of course, that they’re letting water out of Lake Sakakawea. While we may see that as a bad sign, maybe it’s a sign that they’re finally taking notice of the dire situation in the lakes of the upper Missouri system. Can we be a little optimistic about that?
