Saturday, March 31, 2012 8:00 am-12:00 pm

We met at South Cove at 8:00 am and went to islands 12, 21, and 23a.

Pinxter-flower

On island 12 we tried to get a picture of the gray crickets that live on the island. However, we did not find any.  Island 12 is on the southern end of the lake and is relatively close to the right (when heading north) side of the lake. Therefore, the majority of the left side of the island is a sand bar because it is not greatly affected by wave action.

Island 21 is on the northern end of the lake and has been greatly eroded. We did not find any evidence of wildlife (besides that from people) on this island. It is frequented by people often because it is home to "Jumping off Rock". Vegetation of the island included: eastern white pine, black cherry, red maple, various oaks, moutain laurel, sweet shrub, pinxter-flower (one of SC's native azaleas), wild ginger and striped wintergreen. 

Sweet Shrub

Wild ginger

Island 23a is one of the northern-most islands on Lake Keowee. It is located near The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards. Once again the island is heavily eroded except for the back side that faces away from the fetch. The vegetation of the island was prominently mountain laurel with a few tree species inlcuding eastern white pine, red maple, and various oaks.
There is a noticeable difference in the vegetation of the southern islands versus the northern islands. The northern islands contain more species of heath shrubs and pines, while the southern islands are mainly hardwood species with more herbaceous plants.