The Peaceful Devil

When our friend invites us to visit the lake house at Devils Lake, my bedroom is usually the same: a little room tucked off to the side of the main hallway with a night-sky-theme and a little triangular window looking out over the lake. 

We have visited Devils Lake many times over the years. Sometimes we camp, and sometimes we are invited to the cottage, but regardless, the memories are all pleasant. I remember the first time I paddled across the lake with another of my mothers coworkers, and landed on the beach at Sand Point Park. I remember the first time I set eyes on the shoreline of the lake at dusk, the first time I set foot in it's shallow, murky waters. When we got a powerboat of our own, we always brought it. I even made a friend there, though it was years ago, and we have never had a chance to catch up. I’ll admit, I was a bit disappointed when I found out she wasn’t there, though I hadn’t been expecting her. 

The canoe, Red Devil rests on
a dock on the Lake's Western
 Shore, prior to an outing

But it isn't just the lake house, its the lake itself. Devil's Lake doesn't seem to me to be aptly named. When you think "devil," usually "peaceful" isn't the first word that comes to mind, but Devil's Lake, located outside of Lincoln City on the Oregon Coast, is certainly peaceful. This is  especially true after nightfall, when all of the boats have gone home for the night and the lake is quiet. If you stand on a dock, and look out across the lake, the darkness is peppered with light: red flashes from radio towers, the lights from windows or docks across the lake of various colors or even multi-colored, and the clouds lit up by the lights of Lincoln City. Then close your eyes and listen: boats bobbing in the miniature waves driven by the light breeze. Behind the houses, cars slip by on gravel roads, their tires merely a whisper in the night. This last visit, I stood out on the dock barefoot for a good fifteen minutes (I hadn't bothered to put on shoes), my feet resting in puddles of rainwater until they were so cold they ached.

Some places along the lake, like
this spot on the East shore remain
largely unchanged, and hint at the
lake's appearance before development

Even this late in the summer, many days dawn gray and cool. The weather isn't cold (it remained in the 60s all day) but still not ideal for a lot of activities: we wasted...er...spent many hours watching movies. But one can only watch movies for so long. Thankfully, there are other ways to pass the time. If you have access to a boat, you must bring it. Despite our access to a larger boat, I selected a red canoe and took it out alone, crossing the lake to the Sand Point Park to snack on edible Salal berries, then perused the shoreline, looking at the cottages, and the spots of wilderness remaining, a clue at what the lake must have looked when construction began on the first cottages. These cottages now permeate the lakeshore, but that only adds to the ambience. One has a heliport, another uses blue ceramic tiles for roofing. Another’s back yard is just a wooden staircase leading straight into the lake, and still another lakefront home lights up the facades with spotlights, so that from a distance it looks like a house of cards. 

I took the canoe out a second time, but once across the lake, I couldn’t convince the canoe to turn into the 20 MPH wind toward home. I was eventually rescued by a generous fisherman passing by (my father.) After this I named the canoe “Red Devil,” and decided that next time, I would take the green one. 

Even in summer months, a thick mist
can swallow the lake. Despite the
appearance, the temperatures remain
comfortable with long sleeves.

While some parts of the lakeshore appear as they might have in centuries past, the lake itself has changed a great deal. In the 1980s, non-native aquatic plants were introduced, and quickly grew so thick that boat propellers would get bound up. The lake is unusually shallow and rich in nutrients, making it ideal for aquatic life. To keep the weds at bay, the lake is stocked with Chinese Grass Carp. The large fish can still be seen wallowing around in shallow water, their fins breaking the surface near shore. Despite the "devil" in the Native American legend from which the lake draws its name, these fish are the closest things to sea monsters you will see on this lake. Birdwatching will reward the patient soul as well: herons, egrets, and kingfishers call its shores home. It's not unusual at all to see an egret resting on top of a motorboat, or even a tree. 

     Devils lake, isn’t by any means a hidden gem and isn’t even a well kept secret, with its hotel, cottages and state park. Yet it remains out of sight for those simply passing through town. The Lake, however, is easily accessed by two roads that share its name, and isn’t far from the beach. Whether you rent a cottage for a few nights, stay in the state park, take a boat out, or even just stop by at one of the lakeshore city parks on your way through town, it’s certainly worth stopping by, and taking it all in for yourself.

Sources:

[Link] New Details: Devils Lake Issues by Jeremy C. Ruak, The News Guard of Lincoln City Pub. Apr. 10, 2018

44˚59'02"N, 123˚59'15"W

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