Highland Lake always fun in the summer

WINSTED —  When the record-breaking heat set in over the past month or so of summer, camping out in your house in front of a fan or cranking the air conditioner up to max might have seemed  like the most viable options for staying comfortable as temperatures have climbed consistently through the 90s.

But for those who have access to one of the Northwest Corner’s many beautiful lakes, Highland Lake, there are ways you can both get out in the sun and cool off.

Scott Rouleau, co-founder and co-owner of Morsel Munk, said this summer’s oppressive heat has served to bring people out into the water in droves.

“We find that we run out of floats — the floats and the tubes and stuff,” said Rouleau. “As for paddleboards, we’ve been pretty maxed out.”

Morsel Munk both rents and sells various types of water-sporting, or just water-fun, equipment. Because there has also been a lack of rain, Rouleau said, it has been harder for people to get out on the rivers, with water levels down half a dozen inches in some places.

There are a handful of lakes in the area, which Rouleau said serve the purposes of both people looking just to soak or float and those who might be a little more serious about waterskiiing or wakeboarding. Highland Lake, West Hill Lake and Tyler Lake in Goshen were three that he said remain popular for Morsel Munk’s customers. 

Although Rouleau described his shop’s selection of waterskis and wakeboards as “the deepest in the area,” and though people continue to chase the thrill of those more intense and extreme activities, as long as you can find a way to get into the water, he said, you’re doing it right.

“All the way across the board,” he said. “Paddleboard rentals — people love paddleboarding because you can just jump in.”

Rouleau cited the lack of rain as another reason for the boom in watersports in the area, with very few days spoiled by bad weather.

But as long as the hot streak continues, there is no better time to find your way out onto a lake.

“Before you go to sleep just soaking in the water,” said Rouleau, who is an avid paddleboarder and water-skier himself, “It brings your body temperature down. It’s definitely helpful.”