Jun 6, 2025
South Shore boat ramp work delayed at Lewis and Clark
Work cannot begin until after June 30 when pallid sturgeon spawning season ends.
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Construction has begun on new amenities at Frye Lake and Beem Lake near Hyannis. If all goes according to schedule, anglers will have an easier time launching boats at both locations by the end of the summer.
Joe Rydell, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission northwest district fisheries manager, said the two Sandhills lakes on state wildlife management areas are easily accessible from paved highways, but getting on them for fishing and hunting is often challenging because of fluctuating water levels, thick shoreline vegetation and a gentle slope not conducive for launching boats.
For both locations, Game and Parks has hired contractors to improve the parking areas and install concrete boat ramps and docks compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. A new vault toilet also will be installed at Frye.
The new ramps will be built on elevated peninsulas that extend into the lake, which will be functional for varying water levels.
The construction is beginning at 120-acre Beem Lake at Avocet Wildlife Management Area just east of Hyannis. The east access point, the location of the new ramp, will be closed during construction, but anglers will be able to use the middle and west access sites.
The 243-acre Frye Lake, the main attraction of Frye Lake Wildlife Management Area just north of town, will remain accessible while the Avocet boat ramp is being constructed, but parking may be limited. Trucks will be coming in and out as they remove soil from Frye to be used at the Avocet project.
When the work at Avocet is complete, Frye Lake access will be closed to the public until its improvements are finished.
Funding is provided through the Recreational Boating Safety grant program managed by the U.S. Coast Guard, with matching funds from the Game and Parks game cash fund. The total construction cost for both locations is $690,000.
Last year, Game and Parks employees also made improvements at DeFair Wildlife Management Area, the site of the 70-acre lake 2 miles south of Hyannis. They added rock to the boat launch and parking area and constructed two new cattle guards at the fence crossings.
Rydell said that lake is not suitable for big boats, but the improvements make launching johnboats, kayaks and other small watercraft easier.