The Presque Isle State Park we know in the summer is slumbering, but it's just as inviting to some folks when it dresses for winter.
Ice fishing huts dotted Misery Bay and Horseshoe Pond on a postcard Sunday. Ice is only as safe as the person walking on it believes; those few dozen anglers had no qualms, and it appeared a few even had even stepped onto the ice from the established ramp near the first vista at the head of Presque Isle Bay before thinking better of it. With the low temperatures forecast for this week, it's likely the bay will come to life with ice fishermen this weekend for the first time this season.
No one dared fish for burbot at the channel, which was souped with ice flowing to and from the lake.
What little open water was visible in the park was alive with waterfowl. A massive great blue heron and ducks rippled the still water near the Duck Pond channel. Ducks came and went from the Horseshoe Pond channel. Tundra swans owned the near-shore at the Thompson Bay inlet, and across the way the tip of Gull Point Natural Area was so alive with ducks it was difficult to distinguish one from the next through binoculars from Beach 11.
One duck blind on the south side of Gull Point was taken down for the season during the afternoon. Another, on the bay's north shoreline near the East Pier, had been blown or pushed over.
Cross country skiers glided through fresh powder on almost every interior trail, and parking at the Sidewalk Trail spilled into the road. The plowed Multi-Purpose Trail held red-cheeked runners and hand-holding walkers.
Today's fresh powder could put another fresh face on the peninsula for those who venture out this afternoon. It's worth the trip.