By Louie Stout
Getting from the new Hudson Lake public access located in the backwaters to the main lake can be tricky due to shallow water.
The lake is located west of New Carlisle. The public boat launch is off N. Emery Road and in the northwest corner of the backwaters. Area at the boat ramp was dredged at the time of construction last summer so water depth there is sufficient for launching boats.
The Indiana DNR plans to dredge a channel from the boat launch to the main lake but that won’t happen until after July of next year.
In the interim, the DNR has provided this map that offers a general idea of how to find your way to the main lake. The main lake isn’t shown here but is located below the bottom of the map.
Areas in green indicate heavy vegetation and even shallower water. The gray area along the west shoreline notes the best navigable water. The first of the two numbers next to the dots indicate water depth at the time the map was made, but depths could vary due to higher and lower water conditions. Nonetheless, boaters are advised to idle with outboards or even travel with electric motor through shallower areas.
The second number indicates sediment depth for the purpose of dredging later.
The DNR does plan to treat vegetation along the travel route sometime yet this spring or early summer.