The Pinhook lake was once the course of the St.Joseph River until it was diverted in the 1920s so Riverside Dr could connect with Cleaveland Rd without building a bridge.
The apex of the lake bend is a site of great historical significance, yet few know...
Read MoreThe Pinhook lake was once the course of the St.Joseph River until it was diverted in the 1920s so Riverside Dr could connect with Cleaveland Rd without building a bridge.
The apex of the lake bend is a site of great historical significance, yet few know of it or why. It is the eastern landing of a portage between the St. Joseph River and the Kankakee River to the west, and thus across the continental divide. It had been used by Native Americans for thousands of years for transporting people and goods between the North Eastern continent and the West. One could paddle a canoe from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of Mexico, and the only time they needed to portage the canoe was at this park, only a couple miles. It is this portage that the Potawatomi Indians controlled that in part made this tribe so powerful and influential. It is also the very spot where the first white man set foot in Northern Indiana. (And most all the Indiana region other than a few shore landings on the Northern banks of the Ohio River) This man was the french trader LaSalle, who married into the Potawatomi and helped found South Bend. The road just to the west up the bank is named after this famous portage... Portage Rd.
The park has plenty of parking. Probably too much parking in my opinion. It also has a sandy swimming area, where I first learned how to swim as a toddler. ( And almost drowned in too, not recommended for toddlers for their first swimming lessons) Just outside of the swim area, the seaweed is dense and so not safe for swimming by inexperienced swimmers.
Fishing is popular at this park. There is a newish boat dock that features a handicapped kayak and canoe loading platform so even wheelchair-bound people can use the lake.
Playground
It has a small playground.
Wheelchair accessible entrance 
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