Lake Casitas
This summer I made the pilgrimage that we all make at some point in our lives. It was, I have to admit, surprisingly moving to actually be standing there at the very spot where Bradley Lewis and Paul Enquist achieved athletic immortality by pulling really really hard on water. Remember how they completed the men’s Double Sculls in 6:36.87, nearly two seconds faster than the Belgian team of Pierre-Marie Deloof and Dirk Crois? Is that moment as vivid in your memory as it is in mine? All of the Norwegian and Belgian and United Statesian Flags waving above the crowd… everyone tightly grasping their Uncle Sam Patriotic Eagle Dolls (with paddles sewn to the wings) to their chests… the deep and moving collective “huzzah!” as Brad and Paul came knifing across the finish line, just pulling their hearts out? Do you have any idea what I’m talking about?
Maybe it will be easier if I simply say; Lake Casitas, in Ventura County, is where the paddling and rowing events took place during the 1984 Olympics. I went there with my family. We camped.
This body of water is a great big (one might say Olympian) drinking water reservoir behind an earthen dam that has no alarm system to alert people living below it when it starts to leak. So if you are considering a move to the greater Ventura area, may I suggest that you consider plots of land that are uphill from the lake?
Aside from the floating port-a-potties, and its glorious Olympic history, my favorite feature of the lake is one of its rules. You are not allowed to touch it - no body contact whatsoever (even though I saw a bunch of ducks floating around with their butts right in the water). This rule forced us to become innovative in the launching of our canoe. The most successful method involved two trees and a bunch of linked bungee cords. Don’t tell, but we still got a little bit wet.
Lake Casitas has, like, 15 campgrounds, and since they are all owned by the private Casitas Municipal Water District, you are still able to have a campfire even if the National Forest Fire Danger Warning Sign down the road is in the process of burning into ashes. The campsites are all situated along a series of inlets on the northern shore of the lake. They are shady and the bathrooms are clean and there is a general store where you can buy life-saving popsicles and straw hats. Some of the campsites, though, are better than others. For example, where it says “model airstrip” on the map, don’t think; “How quaint, a model railroad club for aviation enthusiasts… I wonder if it is ever used?” Think; “Flying leaf blowers. Every morning starting at 8:00.” The most satisfying sound I heard on the entire trip was the crunch of a failed landing. So you might want to stick with the more easterly campsites; “Grebe” and “Egret” look like they’d be pretty good. And make sure you bring lots of quarters for the showers because that’s the only water you’re allowed to touch.
This summer I made the pilgrimage that we all make at some point in our lives. It was, I have to admit, surprisingly moving to actually be standing there at the very spot where Bradley Lewis and Paul Enquist achieved athletic immortality by pulling really really hard on water. Remember how they completed the men’s Double Sculls in 6:36.87, nearly two seconds faster than the Belgian team of Pierre-Marie Deloof and Dirk Crois? Is that moment as vivid in your memory as it is in mine? All of the Norwegian and Belgian and United Statesian Flags waving above the crowd… everyone tightly grasping their Uncle Sam Patriotic Eagle Dolls (with paddles sewn to the wings) to their chests… the deep and moving collective “huzzah!” as Brad and Paul came knifing across the finish line, just pulling their hearts out? Do you have any idea what I’m talking about?
Maybe it will be easier if I simply say; Lake Casitas, in Ventura County, is where the paddling and rowing events took place during the 1984 Olympics. I went there with my family. We camped.
This body of water is a great big (one might say Olympian) drinking water reservoir behind an earthen dam that has no alarm system to alert people living below it when it starts to leak. So if you are considering a move to the greater Ventura area, may I suggest that you consider plots of land that are uphill from the lake?
Aside from the floating port-a-potties, and its glorious Olympic history, my favorite feature of the lake is one of its rules. You are not allowed to touch it - no body contact whatsoever (even though I saw a bunch of ducks floating around with their butts right in the water). This rule forced us to become innovative in the launching of our canoe. The most successful method involved two trees and a bunch of linked bungee cords. Don’t tell, but we still got a little bit wet.
Lake Casitas has, like, 15 campgrounds, and since they are all owned by the private Casitas Municipal Water District, you are still able to have a campfire even if the National Forest Fire Danger Warning Sign down the road is in the process of burning into ashes. The campsites are all situated along a series of inlets on the northern shore of the lake. They are shady and the bathrooms are clean and there is a general store where you can buy life-saving popsicles and straw hats. Some of the campsites, though, are better than others. For example, where it says “model airstrip” on the map, don’t think; “How quaint, a model railroad club for aviation enthusiasts… I wonder if it is ever used?” Think; “Flying leaf blowers. Every morning starting at 8:00.” The most satisfying sound I heard on the entire trip was the crunch of a failed landing. So you might want to stick with the more easterly campsites; “Grebe” and “Egret” look like they’d be pretty good. And make sure you bring lots of quarters for the showers because that’s the only water you’re allowed to touch.
posted by kyle at 9:19 PM
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