Buse Lake is not really a paddling lake.    It is smaller, there are no good launch spots, and it is an alkali lake with lots of aquatic growth.    But, it is scenic, it has a different ecosystem, and would be very unlikely to meet another boat on the lake.    On the last day of August, I drove to the lake and found my usual spot not available, since someone was camped at the access point.   Instead I parked farther back.     I had to haul the kayak down the slope, over a barbed wire fence and along to a shallow, muddy area.    Most of the lake is within Buse Lake Protected Area, but the lower end of the park (around the lake) is protected because of the alkali environment and the wildlife that occupies inhabits the area.

The protected area continues all the way up to the Buse Hill.    The bluff on the left is the viewpoint for that hike.

There were brine flies in the shallows.     They feed on cyanobacteria, algae, and diatoms.   Pondweed filled the shallow bays.   Ducks fed on the flies and other insects.    Killdeer hunted on the shoreline.

I paddle the lake to enjoy observing the life that thrives in the highly alkaline environment.    This is a slow paddle, with no thoughts of time or distance.

In some summers, the lake becomes eutrophic, that is, it becomes nutrient rich, but oxygen poor.    As the supply of fresh water dwindles, cyanobacteria and algae may multiply and the lake may begin to change color.      On this day, the water was clearly alkaline, but not yet-oxygen depleted.