[music playing] Lacey: It's hard to beat a day on the lake.

I'm WEIU's Lacey Spence.

In this episode, we'll share why you should take a hike or a boat to Lake Sara.

Rameen: Take a Hike on WEIU, is supported by Rural King, America's Farm and Home Store, camping supplies, kayaks, fishing, and pet supplies and more.

Find your store and more information regarding Rural King at ruralking.com.

Lacey: Hi, I'm WEIU's Lacey Spence.

I've lived in central Illinois my whole life, and if there's one thing I've learned, you don't have to go too far to find the beauty of the great outdoors.

Come along with me as I visit a variety of parks and natural areas across Illinois, and share why you should take a hike to each episode's location.

Adventure and fun await in Take A Hike, the miniseries.

Lacey: Thank you for joining us for this episode of Take A Hike.

I'm your host, Lacey Spence, and today we are on the road.

We are at Lake Sara.

There might be woods behind us, but the lake is coming up later, and we've got the Lake Superintendent with us today.

We've got Mike Dirks.

Welcome to Take A Hike.

Mike: Thank you.

I appreciate it.

Lacey: Of course.

So diving right in, can we get a little bit of the background of where we are seated this morning?

Mike: Correct.

We are in the post oak flatwoods.

It's a partnership between us and the DNR of some set aside ground.

Post oak flatwood system is just an example of almost a savanna system.

Back in the day whenever the prairie was around, fires were used frequently, and they would come through and it's just relationship between fire and poor soil, poor drainage.

And this is one of the best examples in the state of Illinois of a post oak flatwoods system.

And it's got a nice hiking trail, and people can walk through and experience what it looked like when settlers first came into the area.

Lacey: Wonderful.

So it's more than just a lake here at Lake Sara.

We've got some beautiful woods to check out.

So as we're talking about the history of the woods, we'd also like to talk a little bit about the history of the lake.

So how did Lake Sara come to be?

Mike: Okay.

So back in the fifties there was some pretty extreme drought.

Effingham was starting to run out of water, so the founding members got together and approached some areas where they could put a lake in possibly.

Right now, we're on...

It would be Blue Point Creek, and they chose this area.

They got together, started Effingham Water Authority and built a dam.

And I think the lake was filled in about 1957, and it's first and foremost a water resource for the city of Effingham.

But with that comes a great chance for recreation, and that's kind of where we're at today.

Lacey: Well, definitely.

Let's dive on into that.

So first off, I'd love to talk about fishing.

Mike: Okay.

Lacey: What kind of fishing is there at Lake Sara?

Mike: Okay.

Pretty similar to most lakes in central Illinois.

We got bass, crappie, blue gill, catfish, channel catfish.

In recent history, we've had a fishing committee kind of come in and install some artificial structures when we used to sink nothing but Christmas trees and give a chance for some shelter for fish, a slot limit was put on the lake here in the last few years with the DNR, and our fishing has seemed to definitely improve.

We have fishing tournaments on the lake and some pretty good opportunities to come out and fish for people.

Lacey: So you kind of led into it there.

So folks are allowed to have boats on the lake, correct?

Mike: Correct.

Yes.

Yes.

Anybody can come out on the lake.

We have two marinas that you can launch on.

I think one of them is free fee to launch.

The other one's $5.

And then the Effingham Water Authority, we just require a year long sticker for motorized.

Also, you can bring canoes and kayaks out, and that's another sticker.

And then you can also get a three-day pass if you're just here temporarily over a weekend or whatever.

But yeah, anybody's welcome to come out.

We love having people out here, love having the fishing tournaments, and people use our lake skiing and everything else.

Lacey: In some past episodes of Take A Hike, we've talked about how it might be a no wake lake.

Is this a no wake lake or can you go crazy?

Mike: You can't go crazy.

Lacey: Okay.

Mike: But this is a typical lake.

We have areas that are no wake that are marked by buoys.

And other than that, the biggest restriction we have is a noise restriction, where there's really no motor limit restriction on our lake.

So yeah, anybody can come out.

The only, the biggest limit we do have that surprises people is we don't allow jet powered engines.

So no WaveRunners or even a boat with a jet powered motor isn't allowed on the lake.

Lacey: Well, that's good to know before packing up and heading this way.

Mike: Right, exactly.

Lacey: If I'm somebody who's looking to get one of those stickers, how do I contact you?

Where do I find those?

Mike: We have vendors that sell them.

So both of our marinas sell them.

Currently, that's Blue Heron Marina, the Reel.

Anthony Acres is a resort here on the lake that sells them, and they have places to stay in their own launch.

And then Mach 1 gas station, the locals know it is Louie's Corner, but coming in on 3233 on Lake Sara Road, that's a pretty good spot.

And they have the very extended hours to actually grab them.

And then the last one would be Lake Sara Marina in town.

They're a boat repair, and they sell boats and it's on your way into Teutopolis off of Route 40.

Lacey: Wonderful.

So there's no shortage of places to snag those.

Mike: Correct.

Lacey: And you had kind of touched on kayak rentals and things.

So are those at the two marinas or where do I rent those at?

Mike: Yeah, we don't really have places that rent kayaks right now.

Lacey: Okay.

Mike: The marinas, they'll rent boats.

Lacey: Rent boats.

Mike: But currently they're not renting kayaks, but you can bring your own kayak.

And we have just down the road here, we have a kayak launch that's open to the public.

Of course, you can launch at the marinas.

And then also on the west end, Downtown Hall Road, we have a kayak launch there.

And those have been in place for a few years now.

But the biggest reason we put those in those locations is because if you launch from areas like the marina, you got a real good paddle to get to these areas.

So we've kind of put them in locations where once you get down into the water and get your kayak or your paddle board in, it doesn't take that long to get to more of our remote sections of the lake like the west end or on the north end down Shumway Cove.

Lacey: And I've been told that these more remote areas, it's like you're kayaking through another world.

Mike: Yeah, yeah.

You get, especially on the west end, and you can get back in the drainage, and you feel like you're somewhere else.

You get away from the houses.

It's nothing but woods.

That's where you'll see plenty of different turtles, ducks, just all kinds of stuff you wouldn't just see on the regular part of the lake just because it's busier.

It's no wake.

It's nice and slow, and you can really get back to some spots where you feel like you're in a different part besides central Illinois.

Lacey: Yeah.

And in addition to kayaking, there's also paddle boarding on Lake Sara?

Mike: Correct, yeah.

Yes.

Yes.

Lacey: Can you talk about that?

Mike: Yeah, that seems over the last several years to really, really pick up.

And we actually have a company out here, Kiki's, and they actually rent paddle boards.

And he stays very busy.

Scott Ealy, you guys may know him.

Lacey: Oh, yeah.

Mike: But yeah, he's got a good little thing going, and he does lessons and everything else.

And it is a good asset to the lake.

Lacey: And then lastly, I have to ask, is there anywhere that folks are able to swim?

Mike: So one of our rules is you're not allowed to swim off your boat.

So what we've done for that is currently we have a floating dock.

You can park by the beach or at the beach and swim at the beach.

And that's where we ask people who don't have a lake lot to go and swim.

On the east side of that area, we have a dock.

And then we've also entered in with a partnership with the marina that's just on the north side of that area, and you can park your boat there.

And then it's just a little bit, a hundred yard walk, to get to that beach and go and swim.

Lacey: That's not shabby at all.

Mike: Mm-mm.

Lacey: All right.

So we've definitely covered our water sports pretty well.

In addition to that, near Lake Sara, there's also golfing opportunities?

Mike: Yes.

Yeah.

Lacey: Folks who like to tee off.

So can you tell us about that?

Mike: Sure, sure.

Yeah.

There's actually three golf courses right in the area.

Lacey: Okay.

Mike: Two are public, one's a private one.

The two public one is the Cardinal Golf Course, and if you get your boat sticker at Louie's Corner and come in, you'll go by Foreway Golf Course.

And then if you get on the north side of the lake, that's where Cardinal Golf Course are.

And both of them are some pretty good golf courses.

Lacey: Awesome.

Another outdoor opportunity, camping, is there camping around the lake?

Mike: Yes.

It's a little more limited, but we do have a campground on the north side of the lake.

It's called Lake Sara Campground, and they usually have some sites available for people to camp.

Lacey: Now, is that camper camping, tent camping?

Mike: It has a little bit of both.

Yeah.

Lacey: Okay.

Mike: Yep.

You can bring both.

Lacey: Wonderful.

As I'm not a huge fan of the creepy crawlies, so I'm more of your glamping kind of gal.

Mike: I understand.

Lacey: So it's good to know there's camper camping.

Mike: Right.

Lacey: We've also been... Kind of in this general vicinity, there is your community building.

Mike: Yes.

Lacey: And you can host events here.

Can you talk about that a little bit?

Mike: Yes.

We have two buildings, and one we're almost staring at.

It's called the Community Building.

That's our larger one.

And both these buildings, people, I'd say 80% of the time people are using them for weddings because it's the scenery, the area.

But with that one, we got enough tables and chairs for 200 people.

If people are bigger on a wedding, a lot of times they'll rent a tent and set it up to expand it out.

It's air-conditioned, has a kitchen in it.

And then the other building is the Pearson Building, and that's over by the beach.

And that one's a little bit smaller, but we recently added air condition to it, which that really, really helps.

But they're set up both the same.

That one's just a little bit smaller, but really, this side of the lake we're sitting on right now, obviously you look behind us and with the building, this is more of a wooded area.

And you can get out there and get married on the lake.

But the other side, it's more like a wide open grassy park area, and there's ample areas that get married outside.

And like I said, those buildings are pretty booked all throughout the year, at least on the peak time.

Lacey: Wonderful.

So let's say we've already had our day of fun on the water.

We are warm, we're parched, and we're hungry.

I hear there's some pretty good spots to eat around the lake.

Mike: Yeah, there's several actually.

And they've really...

Especially the last few years, they've really picked up, and they've been wonderful places.

But you got the Pinky's, which is one of the... A lot of people know about that one.

It's more of a eating outside in the atmosphere.

You get to sit out there underneath the canopy, even if it's raining or sunny or windy, the food's pretty good, and you can sit out there and just enjoy a beautiful view of the lake.

If you go right below that, where the old bait shop used to be at that marina, it's the Reel is the bar down there, and you can go down there and get yourself a drink.

They always got some neat little specials as far as kind of themed with the lake type of deal.

And then, so on the other side is Heron Cove, and that's a restaurant that's been here for about three years, and it's very good food too.

And I mean, they're wonderful assets to have on the lake.

Lacey: Oh, yeah.

Mike: And anytime you have something like that, an ability for people to go and eat, they're pretty good.

Lacey: Now, are they open seasonally?

Mike: Yes.

Lacey: Thereabouts?

Okay.

Mike: Heron Cove typically tries to stay open throughout the year, but Pinky's and the Reel, it's best just to get on their Facebook pages.

Lacey: Sure.

Mike: They update pretty regularly on the hours because they do change seasonally, and then you can kind of figure out exactly what their plan is for that week type of deal.

Lacey: Perfect.

So we've not talked yet about some big events that happened on the lake.

Mike: Yes.

Lacey: I know there's a couple of big draws.

Can we go ahead and start with the Lake Sara Dam Run?

Mike: Yes.

So the Dam Run has been going on for... Oh, Ruth is going to get me for not getting this right, but let's say 22 years.

But it actually benefits the Special Olympics, and it's right here.

Where we're sitting right now is where it starts.

And they got a 5K and eight mile, 5K run walk and eight mile.

And then the last, I think this will be the third or fourth year for the half-marathon.

And it's kind of neat.

It starts on the dam and then it runs out around the lake, different routes depending on what you're running.

And some years they have a lot of people.

I do a lot of running.

It might not look like it, but a lot of the races around here, they're some good numbers, but this, it's a step above as far as numbers.

They have a ton, and then they raise so much money for Special Olympics every year.

And then they also donate to other places.

And as far as most people, whenever they run, they get the T-shirt and then they hope there's water bottles and bananas there.

But for this one, all kinds of people are there donating.

And then you can even get them massaged after you're done too.

Lacey: The community really comes together for that.

Mike: They really do.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Lacey: I'm sorry if I missed it.

What time of year abouts is that?

Mike: That one is in April.

It's always the first Saturday of April.

Lacey: Gotcha.

Mike: Yep.

Lacey: And then another event for the Special Olympics, the polar plunge at Lake Sara.

Mike: Yes.

Lacey: Talk about that chilly dip.

Mike: Yep.

So that one's normally, I believe, in February.

And yeah, it's kind of neat because it depends on the year or how the year goes, but I have a picture of ice eight inches thick, and we had to go out with a dive team and actually use chainsaws to cut.

And that's only been one year, but that year was a true polar plunge and diving in.

But every year, it's pretty cold, and they got some pretty good numbers too.

It's a theme deal and everybody really comes out for that one too.

Lacey: More power to you all.

What else have we got?

We've got the Moccasin Creek Music Festival.

Mike: Yes.

Yes.

Lacey: That sounds like fun.

Mike: There's several festivals over, and that's at the marina on the north side, the Reel Marina.

But that has several music festivals throughout the year, three I think.

And the Moccasin Creek Festival is one of the bigger ones.

It's a Thursday through Sunday event, and they have some pretty popular local bands or some bands you know of.

And maybe I'm just not in the music scene enough, but they get people from Canada to come and perform some more well-known stuff.

And it's a good little deal.

They get all kinds of vendors and everything, so it's a pretty good concert.

Lacey: And you said it was a couple day deal, about what month?

Mike: That one's in June, I believe.

Yes.

Lacey: Little bit warmer.

And then as we head later into the year, 4th of July on Lake Sara.

Mike: Yes, the big one.

Lacey: That's a pretty big deal.

Mike: Yeah.

One would say it's probably, as far as population, the biggest event in Effingham County.

Lacey: Oh, wow.

Mike: And it's been going on for years.

The good neighbors actually put it together, and so they do the fundraising for the fireworks.

And they raise money every year, and the show gets better and better every year.

But it's always on...

Right now, it's always on the 3rd of July.

So it's the day before the fourth because the fireworks in town, and people come by land and people come by sea.

It's just amazing the amount of boats that are out there.

I have the lake superintendent house over here, and whenever the fireworks are done, you just see an exodus of white, green and red lights coming.

Lacey: Oh, yeah.

Mike: By boat.

And then there's thousands of people on that come that don't have the boats, and they come and they sit on the beach.

And they're right underneath the fireworks, and it's a pretty big show.

Lacey: Now, have you viewed it from land and from water?

Mike: I have, yes.

Lacey: So I need the insider scoop?

Mike: Oh, the best- Lacey: Which is prettier?

Where should I watch?

Mike: I would say probably by boat, because you can get out a little bit further back, and you're not craning your neck up.

But by land, you can get a little ways back from it too.

And like we tell everybody, either or, you're going to take a while to get off the lake or you're going to take a while to get out of there in your vehicle.

So if you do come and you come by land, be prepared to stay there for a while.

Lacey: Gotcha.

So you're not really losing out wherever you're trying to view it from?

Mike: You are not.

No, not at all.

Lacey: Wonderful.

Well, we are about to head into our second half of the show.

We're going to be talking about the revival of Lake Sara.

Are you able to just give a brief look at what we might be hearing about from our friend, Christo?

Mike: Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

Christo, he's going to tell you all about what we've done on the north side of the lake.

And just real quick, I'm almost 40 years old, and I remember as a young kid going to the beach, and there's a water slide.

And I mean, that was the place to be back in the day, and that kind of fell to the wayside.

So thanks to some great people, some great donations, and just some hardworking folks.

We've started to turn that area around, so we're starting to bring the public back to it and give them something to do as far as parks and a nicer beach and everything.

Lacey: I'm sure that has to be a good feeling to see- Mike: It is.

Yeah.

Lacey: ...

It get revived.

Mike: There's nothing better than... My guys, whenever they used to go over there and collect the trash after the weekends or whatever, or even during the week or whenever we go over there during the week, there used to be nobody there.

But now in the middle of the summer, even on a Wednesday afternoon, all of a sudden that park's full and that beach is full.

And that's just a wonderful thing because people are able to get out here and use something.

One of the bigger complaints I hear in the area is there's nothing for kids to do.

And especially that free, nothing free for kids to do.

And we're starting to give them an opportunity.

They can come out to the beach and swim, and then go play at the park if they get cold in the water or hot up top and cool down.

And it's just an opportunity for people to get out in the public and enjoy the outdoors.

Lacey: Wonderful.

Well, before we switch gears here, is there anything else you wanted to add I didn't ask about?

Mike: No, I think that we covered most of it.

Lacey: Hit the nail on the head.

Mike: Boom.

Got it.

Lacey: We love it.

Awesome.

Well, thank you so much, Mike.

We're going to take a quick break, and we'll show you our Take A Hike showcase.

So don't go anywhere.

[drone noises, music playing] Lacey: And we are back.

We've swapped locations out here at Lake Sara.

And look, we've got a new guest.

Can you introduce yourself to our viewers?

Christo: Yes, my name's Christo Schultz, and I am on the Lake Sara Forever board.

Lacey: Wonderful.

So as we've switched locations, it's because we've got some bright new scenery to check out.

So can you talk a little bit about...

There's some revitalization that's happening here.

Christo: Yes.

Lacey: What's going on?

Christo: So we've done a complete transformation of the Lake Sara Beach Park here in the past couple of years.

The Lake Sara Beach used to be really a mecca for the community, the Lake Sara community, the Effingham County community, where people would come.

There used to be a water slide here.

Lacey: Yeah.

Christo: There was a train that ran between the campground and the beach.

And hopefully you'll show some pictures of what it used to look like.

But it really fell into disrepair many years ago, and we had a group of people that wanted to get it back into the state that it was or even better.

And so what we've been working on for the past couple years is raising funds, getting grants, and building this beautiful park that we're here today at.

Lacey: Wonderful.

So can you walk us through some of those projects?

You can start wherever you'd like.

Christo: Yeah.

So several years ago, the Lake Sara Forever group started off by raising funds to build some shore wall structure to keep erosion from entering the lake property.

We ended up accomplishing that goal many years ago.

Lacey: Awesome.

Christo: And we wanted to then tackle the next goal, which was building the lake and the lake park into something fantastic.

And so three years ago we started on this project, got a master plan put in place, and so worked with the community on what they would like to see.

And so the first phase of our multi-phase project is to build a playground.

And so we've accomplished, checked one of those boxes.

Lacey: Well, I love that.

And I love that you've gotten community feedback because again, if you're trying to revitalize something, it's important to hear from multiple voices, get everybody at the table about what they'd like to see out here.

Christo: It really is.

And phase two, one of the landmark features that we're going to have is pickleball.

Lacey: Oh, yeah.

Christo: It's become popular here in the past couple years.

And so again, listen to the community, what do they want?

And so we're going to have four pickleball courts out here during our next phase.

Lacey: Love it.

Well, let's sneak back to phase one really quick.

So we're standing in between several areas of play.

Now, behind the scenes, y'all were telling me that there's several age groups that can hit this area.

Can you talk about that?

Christo: Yes.

So we are currently standing on the five to 12 age group park right now.

So you can see it's kind of flag shipped with a pirate ship here in the background.

We also have a smaller playground that's more geared for individuals that are two to five years old right over here in this area.

And so trying to keep those kids so that they can all play together but separately as we have those different age groups running around the park.

Lacey: Well, right, and they've got different interests, different levels of play.

There's music equipment out here and swings behind us.

And what's it like for you?

You've got a little, littles.

Christo: I've got two little kids, yep, a four-year old and a two-year-old.

Lacey: And what's it like to be able to bring them out here and show them part of the community you love?

Christo: They love it.

I mean, how often do you get to go and see a park that first of all you get to play on, but then go out and look at the water.

When you get hot and you get tired of playing, you can go out and swim out.

And so it's really magical to see them coming out and enjoying this area.

And we just feel very blessed that we have a community that supported us with raising the funds, donating, and we were able to get some grants done as well, and that the people are wanting to come out and use it as well.

Lacey: Sure thing.

Now, in addition to these awesome playgrounds, there is also disc golf.

Christo: Yes.

Lacey: Did I dream that?

Christo: Yes, we have 12 disc golf holes.

And so you might ask why we have 12.

We have a nine hole disc golf course that cuts through the woods back in our background, but we also have three ADA accessible... Lacey: Holes.

Christo: ... Three holes as well.

Lacey: Yeah.

Christo: Yeah.

And so we're able to allow any type of individual to come out and play disc golf.

Lacey: Well, I love that.

We love accessible spaces because we want everyone to be able to enjoy nature.

Christo: Yep.

Lacey: Is there anything else in this first phase that we haven't talked about that benefits folks?

Christo: Yeah, so in the first phase it's primarily dedicated towards children, but phase two, we're really trying to get into that upper age group.

So just to talk about a little bit about phase two.

Lacey: Sure thing.

Christo: We're going to have outdoor workout equipment as one of them.

Lacey: Awesome.

Christo: We're going to have an American Ninja Warrior style obstacle course.

Lacey: No way.

Christo: For individuals as well.

We'll have beach volleyball.

And then like I mentioned earlier, we're also going to have the... What did I mention earlier?

Lacey: The pickleball courts.

Christo: The pickleball courts.

We're going to have the pickleball courts.

It's four pickleball courts.

Lacey: There's so much, you can't keep track.

Christo: That's right.

Lacey: Well, I love that.

Where did the ideas for those come from?

I mean, especially the training course.

That sounds so cool.

Christo: We're trying to make this an area where you can have every age group that can come and enjoy this piece of property.

So we started off with the young kids, and we're working it into kind of that middle generational area.

Long-term, we're hoping to... We're going to have a walking track as well.

And so there's just a lot of different areas that we're wanting to try to hit so that every age group can come out and enjoy the Lake Sara Beach Park.

Lacey: And that will expand the mobility type things because where we had started the episode, there was the trail right behind us that worked it's way around the lake.

And so will the walking trail be anywhere near where we started, or is it closer to over here?

Christo: It will not, but the one thing that Effingham does have is a trek trail.

Lacey: Okay.

Christo: It's for bicycles.

Lacey: Yeah.

Christo: One of our long term goals is to have that connect up with the rest of this park and so that you can start off in the heart of Effingham and ride your bicycle all the way around to the beach park.

Lacey: Well, wonderful.

We've talked about phase one and phase two.

Are there any other phases?

Christo: So we've got several other phases.

I'm not going to get deep into the details on them.

Lacey: That's fine.

Christo: Because they're ever-changing.

Just like I talked with pickleball, that was not necessarily on our phase one to-do list, but again, as things evolve, as we get people involved with the community that want to discuss what we can do out here to keep improving, that's what we're going to do.

Lacey: Now, I have to let folks in on a little bit of something.

So the lake is important to you.

You have a fun story of how you and your wife got together?

Christo: I do.

Lacey: Can you share a little bit?

Christo: Yeah.

So our story of how we got engaged actually was out here on Lake Sara.

So I grew up out on the lake.

It's always been a very important part of my life.

And so whenever it was time to ask my wife to be with me forever, I decided that I'd want to have the lake involved.

So we went out on a boat ride, and as we were coming back, got engaged, proposed to my wife and the rest of our families were on the dock cheering us on.

So it was kind of a special, The lake has always meant something special to me for a variety of different reasons that that's just one more reason why it's very special.

Lacey: Well, sorry to put you on the spot there, but just so the folks at home know, this is someone who's invested in the lake and it's future because it means so much.

Christo: It means so much to me now for my childhood and then for my kids as well.

Lacey: Yes.

Is there anything else about this project that we didn't hit on that you wanted to share?

Christo: I don't think so.

I think we really covered most of it.

Lacey: Awesome.

Well, Christo, thank you so much for coming on Take A Hike.

We appreciate it.

Christo: I very much appreciate it.

It was wonderful having you here.

Lacey: Yes, thank you.

And we hope our viewers will join us for our next episode of Take A Hike.

[music playing] Rameen: Take a Hike on WEIU is supported by Rural King, America's farm and home store, camping supplies, kayaks, fishing and pet supplies and more.

Find your store and more information regarding Rural King at ruralking.com.