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In the Kitchen with Judi Denard

Story Scotty Vickery
Photos by Kelsey Bain

Judi Denard stood in her kitchen overlooking Logan Martin Lake and pointed to a headline in a newspaper clipping that was yellowed with age. The accompanying story focused on Judi and her husband, Carlton, who had just moved into a townhome on the water. “A great place to start a new life,” the headline read.

“Look at that title from 1998,” she said. “It could still be the same title today.” That’s because Judi, who will turn 80 in January, is starting over once again. After Carlton passed away in February 2020, Judi sold the large home they renovated together and moved back to Harbor Town Townhomes, where they lived when they first got married.

“Twenty-four years later, I’m back where I started from,” said Judi, who returned to Harbor Town last August. “This unit came up for sale and when I walked in, I didn’t even have to look around. I’ve always loved these condos – I’m just a river rat at heart.”

One of the things Judi loves most is the view from her kitchen counter. “When you stand back here, you don’t see the land, you just see water,” she said. “It’s like being on a cruise ship. You can go to a different place every day.”

Small spaces

Although the kitchen is about a third of the size of the one in the four-bedroom lake home she and Carlton eventually renovated, Judi is rediscovering that good things come in small packages. “It’s not a big kitchen, but it gets the job done,” she said. “It’s a fun kitchen to work with.”

Judi had plenty of time during the height of the pandemic to get her new, compact kitchen just like she wanted it. She had lots of help from her daughter Parys Scott, who splits time between Atlanta and Pell City and owns the condo two doors down. “We’re trying to get my granddaughter to buy here, too,” Judi said. “Then we’d have three generations here.”

Judi’s current kitchen overlooks a dining area, which is open to a living area with a vaulted ceiling. “My other kitchen was as big as the whole living area here,” Judi said. “My big kitchen was great, but we nearly walked ourselves to death.”

In her new kitchen space, which previous owners renovated, she has a built-in cabinet for her microwave, pots, pans and dishes, a built-in wine rack, and a functional area that allows her to complete all her tasks without moving around too much. She stores serving pieces and other items in the guest room closet, which is just off the kitchen.

“I’ve had fun coming up with creative ways to make the most of the space,” Judi said. She found a roll-up dish drying rack that fits over her sink when she needs it and allows her to cut vegetables or dry dishes without taking up space on the counter. She‘s especially fond of her noodle board, a wooden tray with handles that covers her stovetop and provides an additional workspace.

“They’re all over Pinterest,” she said. “I love all this stuff that gives me the wherewithal to make my space more functional. I can’t wait until it’s football season. I can just make some snacks, put them on my noodle board, pick it up and take the whole thing over to the television.”

Her Greek meatballs and Greek layer dip made with hummus and Greek yogurt are sure to make an appearance. “I love to cook, and I just love Greek food,” she said. “I love entertaining with themes.”

Theme or not, Judi has always loved entertaining, period. That’s why the loss of Carlton and four dear friends, who all have died within the past year, have made this year of isolation especially difficult for the vivacious Judi.

“We used to do a lot of entertaining,” she said. “We had a football group, we had dock parties every Friday night, and we had lots of people over for dinner. After Carlton died and COVID hit, I only saw my daughter and granddaughter, who came in from Atlanta on the weekends. We didn’t see anyone else. We’ll all start back eventually, I guess.”

A place to call home

When Judi and Carlton married in 1996, it was a second marriage for both. They had each lost a spouse to cancer, and Judi was living in Atlanta while Carlton was a builder in Trussville. “I said, ‘Let’s move to that little city on the water,’” Judi remembers.

Living room featuring a silk wall hanging

They lived in the townhome for 10 years before buying the lake house, which was just a mile away. They lived there for 14 years, until Carlton’s death. “I knew I didn’t want the upkeep of that big house and yard, so when my daughter told me this unit was available, I jumped at it,” she said. “There’s a lot to be said for downsizing, and when you get to be my age, it’s amazing how little you have to have.”

Although she got rid of a lot of things, including some of the elephant figurines and artwork that were part of a large collection – “I’ve always loved elephants,” she said – Judi kept many things that are special to her. A crazy quilt tapestry that she made from Dupioni dupioni silks has a place of honor above the fireplace. One of the tapestry’s 12 squares features labels from her mother’s clothing that represent a variety of Birmingham department stores, including Loveman’s, Blach’s and Burger-Phillips.

The downstairs living area also features several paintings created by artist friends, and a gallery of animal-themed artwork hangs next to the fireplace. “We had animals all over the house over there, and they ended up all together over here,” she said.

Another prized possession is an old recipe box filled with handwritten cards of some of her family’s favorite dishes. “Sixty years ago, we were all swapping recipe cards,” Judi said. “A friend I went to grammar school and high school with texted me recently that he had just run across one of my old recipe cards. We’ve gone from recipe boxes to cookbooks and now to Pinterest.”

A new life

Although the past year has reminded Judi that she can’t take anything for granted, she tries to look forward instead of back. She loved the memories she and Carlton created in the townhome and their house, and she’s looking forward to creating more memories in this next season of life.

She’s making plans to see The Rolling Stones in concert in November, and she’s thinking about making her own music. “My neighbor plays the violin and has a friend who plays the guitar. I play the piano, so we’re going to form a band,” she said with a laugh. No matter what she does next, she’s happy to be in a place that’s familiar. “I loved our house, but I love my condo, too,” she said. She’s fortunate that both places have the one thing she needs most: a fabulous view of the water. “You can’t beat it,” she said of life on the lake. “We saw the sun come up there, and you see the sun go down here.”

Greek Layer Dip

1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup unflavored Greek yogurt
2 tsp. dried dill
¼ tsp. Lawry’s seasoned salt
1 tsp. minced onions
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 cucumber peeled and diced
1 container hummus
Feta cheese
Sliced black olives
Tabouli (I buy it in the deli section at Publix.)

Combine first seven ingredients and refrigerate. Spread hummus on bottom of bowl with a spatula. Spread mayonnaise and yogurt mixture on top of hummus. Continue layering the following: Tabouli, diced cucumber, feta cheese and olives. Serve with pita bread.

Greek Meatballs

1 ½ pounds ground beef
1 small red onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
¾ tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. cinnamon powder
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
½ to 1 tsp. red chili flakes
1 bread slice
2 tbsp milk
1 egg
½ cup flour
¼ cup olive oil (if frying)
Tzatziki sauce (I use the kind from the Publix deli.)

Soak bread slice in milk and tear up. Combine all ingredients except oil and flour. Mix well and refrigerate for 1 hour. Grease hands and make round balls, using 2 tbsp of the mixture per meatball. (You can make them any size you want, though.) Dredge meatballs in flour. Fry meatballs in olive oil or bake them at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Serve with Tzatziki sauce.

Remember When: Neely Henry Dam ushered in new era for Coosa River region

Story by Leigh Pritchett
Photos courtesy of Edna Daffron, Margaret Green, Buck Humphries
(from the Scarboro Collection), Alabama Power

Many times in her life, Ellen Hare had heard that a dam would be built on the Coosa River near Ragland.

“I have heard that all my life,” she said in the 1950s to family members.

“Big Mama,” as she was called, wanted to see that dam. “She loved to think about things like that and picture it in her mind,” said Jerry Sue Brannon of Ragland, Hare’s 84-year-old granddaughter.

Later, though, Big Mama resigned herself to the likelihood it would not happen in her lifetime, according to Brannon. “She said, ‘I just won’t live to see that.’”

Indeed, she did not. Hare died in the early 1960s, which was also when construction was starting on H. Neely Henry Dam. The dam went into operation in 1966.

“The first time we crossed the dam,” Brannon recalls, “we said, ‘Big Mama, we’re crossing the dam you didn’t think would be here!’”

Big Mama had been right. Talk about developing the Coosa River had spanned her entire life. The beginning of those discussions date to 1870, according to the publication, Alabama Power Company’s Coosa and Warrior River Projects.

“Many surveys of the Coosa River had been authorized by Congress beginning with a recommendation in the 1870s for 34 locks and dams, with later recommendations in 1892, 1904, 1909, 1931, 1943, 1947, 1952 and 1953 for varying numbers of dams,” the publication reveals. “The last study by the United States Army Corps of Engineers recommended eight dams.”

The river, before the dam was constructed, was “free-flowing,” said Gene Phifer of Riddles Bend in Etowah County.

“It was shallow, but it was swift” and in constant motion, said Ohatchee’s Lewis “Buck” Humphries.

Beth Evans-Smith of Ashville was a little girl when Alabama Power undertook land negotiations to prepare for Neely Henry Dam and the lake it would form. She remembers going to an Alabama Power office with her dad and granddad during negotiations. The Evans family lived three miles from where the dam would be built.

After negotiations were finalized, landowners had two years to get their property ready for the reservoir that would result, Evans-Smith said. Her parents and grandparents had to relocate several structures on their Greensport farm to higher ground, get rid of some cattle and complete other building projects.

“I remember it was chaotic and stressful,” said Evans-Smith.

Leading up to and during the dam’s construction, travel in the area could be a challenge. A road between Greensport and Ragland was closed, and its bridges and culverts deconstructed because it eventually would be under Neely Henry Lake, said Evans-Smith.

There was also an effort by some area residents – among them Brannon’s husband, Charlie (now deceased), Margaret Green of Ashville and Junior Dover (now deceased) of Ohatchee – and archaeologists to find and preserve as many artifacts as possible. Some archaeological activities focused on the Lock 1 area where Green and her parents lived.

“When I was a little girl living at Lock 1, I can remember going to what my father called ‘the bottoms.’ This was land that lay beside the river bank,” said Green, who has researched the Greensport area history and chronicled steamboat travel on the Coosa. “… It was not unusual to find arrowheads down on the bottom land. As we picked up these arrowheads, my father would tell me stories of how my grandfather used to plow that land, and human bones or pieces of broken pottery would be turned to the surface. I think it must have been such a common occurrence every spring when the fields were plowed, and no one thought about the significance. In the early 1960s before Neely Henry Dam was built, and the bottom land was flooded, a team of graduate students from the University of Alabama’s archaeology department came to the area and unearthed several Indian skeletons.”

Humphries said his brother-in-law, Norman Henderson, helped to build the dam. While moving dirt with equipment at the upper end of Wood Island (above Lock 3 on the St. Clair side), Henderson also uncovered graves of Native Americans.

“(Wood Island) was actually a huge trading post (for Native Americans) at one time,” said Humphries, whose knowledge of the Coosa River and the area’s history is extensive. The site had also been a natural ford.

Wood Island, part of the Ten Island series, had been a settlement for Creek Indians, notes Natasha Reshetnikova, in the March 23, 2013, article A magnet for civilization, exploration, conflict on Alabama Power’s Alabama NewsCenter website. Ten Island also held strategic significance in the Creek War and Civil War and was in proximity to Fort Strother, built in 1813.

Like any other massive project, the dam’s construction piqued curiosity and people wanted to see what was happening at the site.

Joan Ford of Ragland and friends would go past the barricades and sneak up for a close look at the work and the huge machinery. “We had a front-row seat,” she said.

Her husband Jack reminisced about seeing large encirclements that were being pumped dry of water for drilling to be done.

And of course, there were stories to share about what was seen, heard or experienced.

Mike Goodson, in History Revisited posted Sept. 27, 2009, on The Gadsden Times’ website, relates a fish tale that circulated. “The divers who worked on … the Neely-Henry Dam at Ohatchee surfaced with stories about giant catfish as large as a man on the murky bottom of the Coosa River.”

Preparing for the lake’s arrival

While the dam was being built, a teenaged Kenneth Swafford undertook a building project of his own, anticipating the fun that would ensue when Lake Gadsden (on the Coosa) deepened.

“I was building a homemade, pontoon boat,” said Swafford, who lives in Rainbow City. “I was just 14 or 15, building my own boat.” The vessel sported a 9.5-horse power motor and pontoons of 55-gallon drums lined with resin.

Boats were an infrequent sight on the Coosa at that time, and when they did appear, they were usually fishing boats, Swafford said. His pleasure boat would surely be a novelty.

Launches and marinas also were few, which limited access to the river, said Steven Baswell, mayor of Ohatchee.

When the dam went into service, what a time of excitement that was.

Phifer, then 18, and his dad went to see – by boat – the dam in operation when it was only a few days old. They found themselves among others watching with great interest from the water.

“That was very memorable,” Phifer said. “That was very fascinating.”

This new dam and the lake it created quickly transformed the landscape, changing communities, travel and the way people regarded the river.

Those who witnessed this metamorphosis said property owners subdivided their land and sold lots for riverfront homes. Property values increased. Marinas, launches, docks and piers were built. Businesses in the vicinity added bait and tackle to their inventory. The river became a popular destination for recreation. Before long, fishing tournaments were being held, drawing anglers from other areas.

The number of boats on the river was ever increasing. “Nowadays, it’s just covered up with boats,” said Phifer.

Added Swafford, “They’re out there night and day, winter and summer.”

With the dam in service, the Coosa River’s level rose. The water became clearer, and fish grew larger in size and number, said Phifer.

He attributed the increase in size and number of fish to two factors. One is that Alabama Power had left some trees that, when covered by water, offered a great habitat for fish. (The trees became a hazard to people and water vessels, an issue that later had to be addressed.) The other is that the nutrients from recently submerged parcels of land seemed to have a positive effect on the fish.

“It really changed this river system when it was put online in 1966. … It was a totally different ecosystem,” said Phifer, who is knowledgeable about the Coosa River environs. He later worked for Alabama Power and, with company support, began in 1999 what would become the Renew Our Rivers cleanup project.

The fact that the river’s water was no longer free-flowing meant anglers had to adjust to stillwater fishing.

“It changed fishing so much that my dad quit fishing (commercially) because he had to go fishing in still water and didn’t know it as well,” said Humphries.

As for travel, Alabama 144 traversed the dam and provided constant access between Ragland and Ohatchee, unlike the ferry services on which people had to depend previously, Baswell said.

This advantage increased traffic into and out of Ragland, said Ford, who served a term as the town’s mayor.

Although its primary function was as a hydroelectric power plant, the dam also became an attraction, a museum and a classroom all in one.

Evans-Smith said some relics found in the vicinity during construction were put on display at the dam for a while.

Ford, who was an educator for three decades, took years of students on field trips to the dam. “Going down under the dam was exciting for them.”

Jerry Sue Brannon got to go into the operations room with husband Charlie, an Alabama Power employee, to watch the dam produce what Charlie called “good, cheap electricity.”

Regarding the Ten Island series, Wood Island had been incorporated into the dam and all the remaining islands, except the top of Rock Island, were covered with lake water, states the Reshetnikova article.

Alabama Power now maintains Ten Island Park, an outlet for swimming, pier and bank fishing, boat launching, hiking, birding and picnicking.

“It ended up, it was the best thing because it generates a lot of energy,” Humphries said of the dam.

Though much history is concealed underneath the lake, one nugget revealed itself in 2007, affording Humphries a rare find.

While walking on Janney Mountain on the Calhoun County side of Lock 3 during drought conditions that had lowered the water level, Humphries spotted three fish weirs that Native Americans had used to trap fish.

So excited he was to see that bit of history before him that he immediately got the camera his wife used for photographing weddings and documented his find … in drizzling rain!

Additional assistance with this article provided by Penny Owens (Town of Ragland); Will Mackey (The Chamber, Gadsden-Etowah County); Hugh Stump (Greater Gadsden Area Tourism); and Karin Cosper (Town of Ohatchee).

Watson said, “the large concrete structure with the fisherman is the north half of dam 5, looking back at Talladega County. This did not go across to St. Clair, only part of the way.”

More about the fifth dam

Photos submitted from Lincoln Mayor Lew Watson
By the time construction commenced on H. Neely Henry Dam in the early 1960s, the quest to improve navigation on the Coosa River was nearing its 100-year mark.

During the first 48 of those years, some projects were completed to make the Coosa River navigable south of Greensport in St. Clair County. In a previous edition of LakeLife 24/7®, an article stated that three locks and the dam for a fourth lock were constructed before Congress stopped appropriating funds for the project.

However, information has been received since, showing more work actually was done.

The publication, Alabama Power Company’s Coosa and Warrior River Projects, states: “Under various Congressional authorizations, six government projects had been completed on the Coosa River by 1918. They consisted of the lock portions of Locks 1, 2 and 3 completed in 1890, Lock 4 and dam completed in 1914, Mayo’s Bar completed in 1915, and dam only No. 5 in 1918. Their continued operation was not justified, so in 1920, the Chief of Engineers reported to the Secretary of War his opinion that the whole existing project should be abandoned due to lack of commercial use.”

Lincoln Mayor Lew Watson took photos in 1963 before Neely Henry Dam was built to record what it was like before the lake was created.

Lincoln’s Landing

Giant outdoor tournament fishing park and much more

Story by Graham Hadley
Photos by Graham Hadley and David Smith
Architectural renderings submitted

There was a time when the only thing on I-20 between Birmingham and the Georgia state line that drew crowds was the Talladega Superspeedway.

Over the past decade, though, that has changed, with signs for the Civilian Marksmanship Program park, TOP Trails Outdoors, Bass Pro Shops, Barber Motorsports and more lining the interstate.

Now the City of Lincoln will soon be adding another sign to that list directing people to its massive fishing tournament and outdoor park on Logan Martin Lake.

Lincoln Mayor Lew Watson and Les Robinson

Located just down the road from Honda Manufacturing of Alabama at 740 Travis Dr., Lincoln’s Landing, which is still under construction but already hosting fishing tournaments, will have space for upwards of 500 vehicles and boat trailers. Its massive boat ramp has room for 10 boats to launch at once and, when completed, will have runway-style lighting marking the lanes.

Park Director William “Les” Robinson, said work is progressing fast. “When I was out here first week in February, all that was out here were piles of gravel and leveled ground. Now we have water lines run, the cement is poured, and contractors are working on the restrooms, pavilions and a large boathouse,” which will be used to store the fire department rescue boat.

“We have already had tournaments here. We have one scheduled for this weekend and at least five more this year and 25 planned for 2022,” he said. Even when the park is not being used for tournaments, there are usually 10 to 12 boats being launched there every day.

The park covers 38 acres of property that used to be a sod farm. It is accessed by a road built with the help of state funding during Gov. Bob Riley’s administration to allow residents in that part of Lincoln to get around trains stopped on tracks that bisect that section of the city, said Mayor Lew Watson. “Lincoln has long needed a place for the public to launch boats. Originally, we were looking at land owned by Alabama Power, but … that did not work out, and we found this land. And then the idea was able to grow from just a public boat launch to a fishing tournament park.”

That will mean big things for Lincoln and the surrounding communities,” he said. “It means more business for our city, hotels and restaurants. It’s located right off a major interstate exit and not right in the middle of a dense residential area. It is right off the main channel on the lake, with year-round water. It is the perfect place for the park. It’s like, ‘If we build it, they will come.’”

In addition to the pavilions, large, paved parking areas and more parking space on the grass, the allure of Lincoln’s Landing goes way beyond just a fishing attraction, with a waterfront boardwalk and piers, trails and eventually, a sand swimming beach.

Robinson said the large pavilion will be great for events, even use as a wedding venue, with plenty of fans and a giant fireplace.

“A few decorations, and you are ready to say, ‘I do!’”

But what’s more, he sees the park as a giant opportunity for youths in the area to get in on competitive fishing.

“Bass fishing is the fasted growing high school sport in the state right now.”

And it’s not just for the boys. Robinson said he hopes the park attracts more women and girls to the sport. “There are a lot more fishing scholarships for girls now, but a lot of them go unclaimed because there are not as many girls out there. If the girls come out and start fishing – and they have to fish competitively – the scholarships are there for the taking. They could get a full ride.”

Like so many of the public works success stories in the region, Lincoln’s Landing is a cooperative effort, Watson said. “The McCaig family donated some land, the railroad worked with us, as did Alabama Power. … And we cornered the market on management of the park,” pointing to Robinson.

Watson said the city was very lucky to get Robinson to head up Lincoln’s Landing. He has served in the military and as the maintenance supervisor for Ashland in Clay County.

“You could say we kind of poached him.”

Right now, the parking, piers and boat launch are available for public and tournament use, but the rest is quickly taking shape.

“We have had some weather setbacks,” Robinson said, and the focus right now is on getting all the buildings and bathrooms completed.

Then things like the almost mile-long walking trail and swimming beach, 24-hour lighting and surveillance cameras come next, he said, hoping to have most of the project done by the end of the year.

Use of the park right now is on an honor system, but they will eventually have an electric kiosk in place – similar to what many large cities use for fee-based parking lots – that will take cash, credit or debit cards.

Recreative Natives

One woman’s passion for environment

Story by Elaine Hobson Miller
Photos by Graham Hadley

She glides through her weedless gardens with the grace of a gazelle, calling each flower by name. She pauses to stroke the back of a fuzzy bumblebee that is feasting on swamp milkweed, the bee ignoring the fact that a human has just touched it. Butterflies flit between her and the purple coneflowers, barely acknowledging her gentle presence. It’s as if they know she is their mistress, the planter of the food sources they so eagerly seek.

These are the gardens of Jessica Thompson, whose property around her Logan Martin Lake home is covered in flowers that she never has to water or fertilize. Some of them so rare that they are found in only one or two places outside private gardens.

Her secret? She plants species that are native to Alabama. They don’t need extra moisture between rainfalls, and they’ve adapted to our soil.

Jessica and her husband, Scott, live on Rabbit Branch. Their property was all lawn when they moved there from Atlanta two years ago. A month after their arrival, Jessicasmothered the lawns with leaves, which suppressed all but the aggressive turf grasses. “I had to dig them out,” she says. As the grasses died, she started expanding, and now, almost all 2.6 acres are covered in native plants and flowers.

“I was attempting 100% natives in my landscape, but I couldn’t find many of them,” she says. “The nearest native nursery is in Fayetteville, Ga., or you have to order them online.”

She started growing them herself from seeds, and soon had an excess. So, she began selling them. That led to her business, Recreative Natives. Word-of-mouth and a Facebook page brought so many customers, she soon sold out of her stock. “I wish I had grown more,” she says.

Native plants take one to two cold stratifications (winters) to germinate. But she learned how to trick them by using a refrigerator so they would germinate in four to six months. Once her gardens started blooming, she knew she could not go back to traditional landscaping.

Home again

Jessica grew up in Cropwell, and her mother lives just four miles from her. She gardened with her grandmother as a child, but it took her years to realize someone could make a career of that. While living in Atlanta, she decided to go back to school and study horticulture at the University of Georgia. She became a landscape designer. Then in 2014, she read a book that would change her trajectory and give her a mission in life.

“I read Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamy, an entomologist who says it’s up to backyard gardeners to save our native insects,” she says. “The reason that’s so important is because it goes up the food chain from birds to carnivores. He said private-property homeowners have more acreage than all national and state parks combined, which puts them in a unique position to help the ecology and nature or bio-diversity.” She began incorporating native plants in the gardens she designed, slowly phasing out of traditional landscaping and into habitat restoration.

“At first, I would sneak a few natives into my designs, but then I became more open and tried to convince homeowners to plant 70% natives,” she says. “That spiraled by word of mouth, and I went totally into designing backyard wildlife habitats, many of them for people who wanted to get wildlife certifications.” She started turning down folks who did not want to include 30 percent to 70 percent natives. “I got pretty snobby about it,” she admits.

Despite her formal education in horticulture, Jessica is largely self-taught when it comes to natives. “I’ve done lots of Googling and studying range maps,” she says. “Alabama has a really good website owned by the Alabama Herbarium Consortium and the University of West Alabama called floraofalabama.org, which maintains an Alabama Plant Atlas. It’s good for pinpointing the counties where natives grow.”

Walking through her yard is like walking through a fairyland filled with flowers and the many types of insects that feed on them. She has an edible section that includes some herbs and plants that aren’t native, such as basil, tomatoes, peppers, sage and squash. It’s modeled after a French potager (meaning “soup pot”) garden that usually includes a structure in the center and mixing veggies with flowers. Her structure is a metal gazebo.

Her edibles include a couple of “sacrificial” tomato plants, where she moves the occasional tomato or tobacco hornworm to keep it off the plants she wants to harvest for her kitchen. “I also have a patch of horse nettles I move them to,” she says. “It’s their native host plant.”

Past the edible garden is a metal arch covered with crossvine, which leads to a short but winding path of pine bark bordered by bits and pieces of tree limbs. “I laid that to recreate a forest floor. Everything growing in this area would grow in a deep forest,” she says. In the midst of this forest setting is a sitting area placed over a septic tank so it can be moved aside easily when the tank gets cleaned out periodically. Along the path is a small Eastern hemlock that seems incongruous in her lively grounds because of its loose-branching limbs. “It’s my Charlie Brown tree,” she says.

Despite its appearance, it’s a very healthy 40-year-old tree, and probably the most expensive purchase for her yard because of its scarcity. “The entire East Coast of the United States and Canada is losing the Eastern hemlock to woolly adelgids, an imported pest that resembles aphids, she says. “It will become extinct in my lifetime. Mine will likely make it as a single tree and not a stand, and because it’s in a simulated habitat.”

The path also winds among a patch of native Hydrangea aborensces (commonly known as wild, smooth or nine bark hydrangea). “Most people think the oak leaf is the only hydrangea native to Alabama, but that’s not true,” she says. The area contains a few non-natives, such as hostas, anda cast iron plant,in tribute to her husband. “I tried torecreate a design that incorporated his favorites,” she says. “He likes the moonvines and lenten roses, which I have in a pot. I still have 98% natives here, but if I keep him happy, he digs holes for me.”

On the peninsula that ends at their neighbor’s pier, Jessica maintains what she calls her “Flood Plain Garden,” because everything planted there can go under water when Alabama Power opens the dam and floods the area. “This is an experimental area and a man-made environment,” she says. “I’m still doing trial and error here.”

This is where she planted flag or Louisiana iris, swamp mallow (hibiscus family), bee balm, garden phlox, Michigan lilies, salvia, cabbage leaf coneflowers and wild indigo. “The cabbage leaf coneflowers are native to Mississippi or perhaps West Alabama, but they aren’t documented in Alabama,” she says. “You can crush the indigo to make ink or dye.”

The swamp mallow closes after blooming for one day, and she stops to open one so a visitor can see the bees sleeping off their nectar drunk. She also has swamp milkweed, a host for monarch butterflies. “They do not drink the nectar but lay eggs on its leaves,” she says. “The bees love it for its nectar.”

She pauses at the coreopsis to pet a bumblebee, literally stroking it with her index finger. It’s something she shows the home-schooled children when she gives them tours. She has never been stung by a bee. “They don’t sting you, they just try to shoo you away,” she says.

She planted ironweed and swamp sunflowers because they have varied bloom times, enabling the bees to eat all year. Monarchs and skippers swarm around her as she tramps through plants looking for black swallowtail caterpillars. “It’s my favorite thing to do,” she says. “I have a borderline unhealthy obsession. I would spend every waking hour here if I could. In fact, it’s hard to go away for more than a couple of days because I can’t wait to get back to my gardens.”

Bees, butterflies and birds

While she walks freely among the bees and butterflies, she has quit feeding the birds at man-made feeders. “By now (mid-July) they are nesting and feeding their babies, and they feed them exclusively on caterpillars and insects,” she says. Also, there’s a mysterious virus going around at bird feeders, and she doesn’t want to spread it. “It started in (Washington) D.C., and it’s moving southeast,” she says. “It has been found in Tennessee. Luckily, growing natives helps the birds. They feed from the plants, eating their seeds and berries and the insects that feed on them.”

Her busiest plant, however, is the clustered mountain mint. Stand near it long enough, and you’ll see 30 different species of insects, including carpenter bees, honey bees, thread wasps, dirt daubers, banded wasps, silver-spotted skippers and buckeye butterflies. “When they’re buzzing around you, they are just checking you out,” she says. “Make them scatter, and they come right back. They are single-minded.”

Continuing the garden tour, Jessica points out a coral honeysuckle, a native plant that she sold out of during her first day of business last spring. She pauses to watch a carpenter bee work its way around the straw-colored stamens of a passion vine, a purple flower that looks more like it was crocheted than grown. As he drank from the nectaries, the bee was bumping the stamens and getting pollen on his back, which is how pollen is spread. Nearby, other bees and insects feasted on a yellow giant hyssop and aroyal catchfly, the latter a threatened species in Alabama and an endangered one in four other states.

Jessica says Alabama is unique with 28 endemic plant species. “Georgia has 11 and Maine only one,” she points out. “Endemic means it doesn’t grow anywhere else. What makes Alabama unique is its varied regions. We have the Appalachian mountain chain, the Piedmont region, the Gulf Coast and the limestone over in Bibb County. The Cahaba River and its limestone bluffs create threeecological regions that have 10-15 of those native plants.”

She has sown some Alabama leather flowers (Clematis socialis), a creeper whose population has been reduced to just three locations, with two of those in St. Clair County and one in Georgia. “The Coosa Plains used to be along the Coosa River, but it’s all forests now,” she says. “These plains were grassland prairies that stretched from Rome, Ga., to Coosa County, Ala. The flooding of the Coosa (to create dams for hydroelectric power) was the largest ecological disaster in U.S. history from the standpoint of extinction, because we lost more plants, animals, fish and clams to this than to anything else.”

The loss of plant species is still undocumented, she says. No one knows for certain what was lost, because they don’t know what was there, except for remnants left behind like the Alabama leather flower and the one population of Cahaba lily on Logan Martin Lake. “Botanists at Auburn University and Davis Arboretum are trying to go back and document the lost plant species based off 100-year-old plant specimens. They have also asked for anyone who has a picture of a plant species from before the damming of the Coosa, even if in the background of a photo, to please send it to them.” (See sidebar for address.)

The St. Clair County locations include one plant in a ditch on the side of the road that the city of Ashville knows not to spray or mow. “It’s a creeper, not a vine,” Jessica says. She does volunteer work for the Nature Conservatory as well as for Birmingham Botanical Gardens in their efforts to save native plants. Alabama Power is contributing to these efforts, too.

One of those natives is the Porter’s goldenrod, which became extinct in Alabama in 2003. Jessica has germinated 13 of them and still has four in her gardens. “A friend of mine is a forester and found some in Hartselle, and documented them, but they were on private property and the property owner destroyed them,” she says. “I have a lot of natives that are expired but live on through cultivation or simulated habitat.”

Back near her patio, hummingbirds come up to the Turk’s cap mallow (hibiscus family) and the woodland sunflowers, but they get the most aggressive at the native honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens).

Jessica rarely sits and relaxes in her garden because she can’t stay still long enough. She’s always planting, pruning or picking. Although she doesn’t spend time watering or fertilizing her natives, occasionally she’ll use a bit of compost. “But I make my own compost tea,” she says.

Ironically, while she does not believe in chemicals in gardens, she slathers insect repellents containing DEET on herselfwhen entertaining friends on the patio because gnats, mosquitoes and other biting insects seem to love the taste of her skin.

“I’ve never been a religious person, but now I am more spiritual from seeing my connection to nature,” she says. “I’m on a mission. I want to get these native plants into traditional gardens. Once people see them, they love them.”

Resources

If you want to further explore natives, Jessica suggests the following websites:

Note: You can send photos of plant specimens from before the damming of the Coosa to Patrick Thompson, Arboretum Specialist, at thomppg@auburn.edu or by ‘snail mail’ to the College of Sciences and Mathematics, Donald E. Davis Arboretum, 101 Rouse Life Sciences Building, Auburn, AL 36849.

Why plant natives?

While people have been planting natives for many years, it has become more popular in the past decade, according to Jessica Thompson. But by choosing natives for your landscape, you are not only helping wildlife but creating a healthier world in which to live. Here are some of the benefits of planting native gardens:

1. Ecological services. You help feed insects and birds, which spread pollen and feed critters on up the food chain.

2. Water runoff and filtration. Trees, shrubs and perennials filter 80% of our runoff. Turf lawns only filter about 20 percent. “Logan Martin Lake tests high for E. coli. I have a theory that it’s due to cutting down trees and making more lawns and walking paths,” she says. “We’ve cut off our water filter.”

3. Water conservation. “I don’t have an irrigation system. I never water my natives gardens. I let rainfall do it. Even in droughts I don’t water them. They perform so much better that way.”

4. Less maintenance and less soil amendments. “They have evolved to grow in our rocky clay. They don’t need peat and topsoil added. Peat is a non-renewable resource. Most of our peat is only available from Ireland, Scotland and Canada. When those old bogs are gone, they’re gone.”

5. Better for the climate. “Natives are more effective at sequestering (taking from the air) and storing carbon long term.”

6. Healthier places for people. “Lawns and traditional gardens are notorious for requiring pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides. Lawns on average have 10 times more chemical pesticides per acre than farmland.”

Islands in our streams

Some might call it a universal orientation. If you’re a newcomer or visitor to the lake boating with a seasoned lake dweller, you have likely been on a tour of the most notable islands of Logan Martin Lake.

And if you have, you know that island hopping on Logan Martin is as educational as it is fun, compelling you to do likewise for the next newcomer to the lake.

Come along on our own version of the tour:

Island hopping on Logan Martin

Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by David Smith

PIRATE ISLAND

Perhaps the most well known of the islands is Pirate Island. That’s probably because the tiny island owned by Jim and Laurie Regan of Pell City have been welcoming guests for years.

On weekends and holidays, it is surrounded by boats that anchor nearby. The island is as inviting as an old friend. The tropical scene is complete with beach, palm trees, pirate flag, fire pit, hammock and a treasure chest full of goodies for the kids. Its shallow waters in the immediate vicinity make it ideal for boaters to cool off on a hot, summer day. And you can’t miss the gangs of children wading through the water to get to the island … and the treasure chest.

The chest is full of colorful Mardi Gras beads and other treasures for kids to find on their island paradise, and Jim has been known to sprinkle gold coins around the water’s edge for the kids to ‘discover.’ Shrieks of pure joy are sure to follow.

Laurie bought the island for Jim as a birthday present, and they have been ‘hosting’ guests ever since.

Don’t let its size – 75 feet by 50 feet – fool you. It’s the biggest attraction on the lake.

BIG BIRD OR HERON ISLAND

It goes by Big Bird Island and sometimes, Heron Island, aptly named for its inhabitants. Just down from Pirate Island,

treetops above, shoreline below and branches all in between are filled with Great Blue Herons, little Green Herons and Snowy Egrets.

Circle the island a little closer, and you might mistake the cacophony of squawking sounds as audio from Jurassic Park. But don’t worry, according to AllAboutBirds.org, the website of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, it’s understandable. Great Blue Herons are “the most vocal on breeding grounds, where they greet their partners with squawking roh-roh-rohs in a landing call when arriving at the nest.”

Snowy Egrets are beautiful, graceful, small and white. They aren’t all that rare, although the species was threatened in the 19th century when they were slaughtered for their plumes. When they became protected, they grew in great numbers and are now extremely common.

If they are there, you’ll find little Green Herons at the edge of the water, crouching to surprise a fish, All About Birds explains. Their “daggerlike bill” is used to “snatch” them. For bait, they use twigs and insects.

Some days, it can mirror a busy airport with birds soaring all around – coming in for a landing or taking off.

GOAT ISLAND

It’s easy to guess how Goat Island got its name. It, too, was named for the island’s inhabitants. The island lies just off the main channel in front of a row of homes in the Pine Harbor and Riviere Estates area.

Years ago, residents placed goats out there to keep the island clean naturally and maintain an aesthetic view of the water without overgrowth blocking the scenery. That’s how they earn their keep.

It’s a landmark around these parts and a popular destination point for newcomers and old timers alike.

SCHOOL BUS ISLAND

Within view of Logan Martin Dam lies an island 150 feet long and 50 feet wide saved from ruin by a band of lake ‘do-gooders’ and Alabama Power Co.

On a map, it’s called Grissom Island. On the water, longtime locals call it by the moniker, School Bus Island, because an abandoned school bus was left behind on the visible strip of land when the lake was created in 1965. The school bus isn’t there anymore, having been lost in a flood, but the name stuck.

David Smith, who lives nearby, noticed that year after year, the island was gradually disappearing. Erosion was taking its toll, so he contacted Alabama Power Company’s Shoreline Management team to see what could be done. Dock builder Fred Casey of Tradesman Co., also a community-minded soul, offered help.

According to Alabama News Center, Casey and company installed 225 tons of riprap, and the shoreline management team stabilized the island. In addition, they created a beach area and left a small inlet so boaters could anchor nearby. And by 4th of July 2018, the lake community celebrated saving the island along with the country’s birthday.

THE CLIFFS OR THE ROCKS

It’s not exactly an island. It’s more of a massive point on the main channel near Lincoln Harbor, but it’s a gathering spot and attraction all in one. Some call it The Cliffs. Others call it The Rocks. No matter what you call it, it’s one of Logan Martin’s many attractions. Its ledges are a traditional jumping off spot for the more daring while boaters gather down below to watch.

History, fun define islands on Neely Henry

Story and photos by Graham Hadley

Submitted photos

When the waters rose along the Coosa River behind Neely Henry Dam, they created a beautiful winding lake dotted with numerous islands.

Ranging from small marshy patches of grass just poking out of the water to wooded tracts large enough to build on, these islands help define lakelife on Neely Henry and are used for everything from duck hunting to residential waterfront neighborhoods that resemble seaside resort communities.

David Partridge, who is one of the owners of Ski World in Gadsden and who grew up on the river, knows many of the islands, most of which are owned by Alabama Power and generally not open for public use, he said. Most of the remaining islands, with a few notable exceptions are in private hands and are also not available to the public except during special events.

But that does not mean the Alabama Power islands don’t get used – there are rules, he said. The areas around many are shallow and good for fishing, especially bowfishing. And the larger wooded ones are great spots for duck hunting – with the caveat that you cannot set foot on dry land.

“You can tie up to a log or stand in the water along the shore. But the minute you set foot on dry land, you are considered to be trespassing. At least that is the way the game warden explained it to me,” he said.

Partridge is especially fond of one, tiny island near the boathouse he uses. “My favorite island is about as big as my boat and has just one tree on it,” he said, noting that, after a day on the lake, he knows he is close to his dock when he spots it on the east side of the lake near Keeling Bend.

KEELING ISLAND

Now not much more than a raised mound of grass, Keeling Island splits the channel near Meadowood Road and Clokey Drive. Partridge said the island used to have a ridge of timber down the middle, but it was clear cut.

Now barely out of the water, the island poses a potential navigation hazard, especially to people new to the lake.

A large sand bar extends south from the island.

WHORTON BEND

By far one of the largest islands on the river, Whorton Bend on the west side of the Coosa is owned by local families and accessed by privately maintained bridges. Parts of the island are landscaped and mowed.

According to the Clokey Family, which owns some of the island and adjoining shoreline property, this island is where Hernando de Soto crossed the Coosa. The island has been used by the community for the Haunted Halloween event for area children. This is a private island and not open for public use, though the south side of the bend used to be a popular anchoring and socializing spot in the 1980s and 1990s, Partridge said.

He does recommend the shallows on the other side of the end of the bend for bowfishing.

Immediately across the lake from the south tip of the island in Glencoe is a cliff in a former rock quarry. People used to jump from the rocks into the lake before a large private residence was built on the top of the cliff.

FIREMAN’S ISLAND

Also located on the east shore near Whorton Bend is Fireman’s Island. Partridge said the property is said to be owned by a group of first responders who use it as a recreational getaway.

The island has a large, covered pavilion and lights, and like most of the other islands, is not open to the public.

PARTY ISLAND

Further south from Bucks Island is one of the few islands that sees regular public use. Partridge said the island is referred to as Party Island, located on the east side of the Coosa in Southside.

The area is a popular anchorage and social gathering spot, especially on weekends.

Like most of the islands on the lake, it is not officially named on charts. But on weekends and holidays, travelling south from the Highway 77 bridges and Bucks Island, it is hard to miss the gathering of recreational watercraft.

BUCK’S ISLAND

One of the most notable islands on Neely Henry is Buck’s Island in Southside on the east bank, just south of the Alabama 77 bridges.

The property was originally the location of Buck’s Island Marina – where they housed and serviced boats. The land, both on the shore and the accompanying island, is covered with bright beach-style homes, complete with a red and white lighthouse.

A prominent sign in the inlet next to the lighthouse lets people know they have arrived at Buck’s Island and kindly reminds people it is a no-wake zone.

The marina business was relocated to 4500 Alabama 77, Southside, and continues to do a thriving business in all things related to the water, from kayaks to boats to apparel.

TEN ISLAND PARK

Not islands any more, but still worth mentioning is Ten Islands Park, on the west side of Neely Henry, just north of the dam.

The historical park is named for a Civil War skirmish – commemorated with a historical marker. The park is accessed by road or water and is part of the Alabama Birding Trails. There is a sand beach, pavilions and observation platform and more.

Partridge again pointed out that though the islands along the Coosa River and Neely Henry Lake are numerous, almost all are either owned by Alabama Power or in private hands and are not generally open to public use.

However, those areas are especially good for fishing, bowfishing and duck hunting, but he recommends checking with the local game warden and Alabama Power before setting foot on any of the islands to be sure you are not trespassing or breaking any other local or state laws.

And a good chart of the lake is a must – some of the islands are barely visible above the water and can pose serious avigation hazards. Because Neely Henry is an artificial lake, water depths, especially near islands, can change drastically in just a short distance.

Fly fishing on the Coosa

All Frank Roden needs is a tie, a fly fish rod and a creek

Story by Paul South
Photos by Wallace Bromberg, Jr.

“Fly fishing is to fishing as ballet is to walking.”

– Howell Raines

“Once you’re a fly fisherman, you’re always a fly fisherman.”

– Frank Roden

From the trout streams of the Great Smoky Mountains to the waters fittingly known as Frank’s Slide at Crow’s Nest Pass in Alberta, Canada, and from Flaming Gorge, Utah, to the tarpon runs in the warm waters of the Florida Gulf Stream, Frank Roden has a trademark.

In the fly-fishing family, he’s “the guy with the tie,” a Windsor-knotted nod to a simpler, more elegant time when fly fishermen dressed to fish like a deacon off to church and before the abomination of “business casual.”

The tie story began when Roden, a 66-year-old Rainbow City auctioneer, furniture salesman and fly-fishing instructor for the iconic Orvis brand, was stalking brown trout in a Smoky Mountain stream. While helping an older angler who struggled to tie a fly on his line, Roden struck up a conversation.

“I miss the days when people used to really dress for fly fishing to the extent of some of us wearing ties,” the older man said.

“I didn’t grow up in those days,” Roden replied. ‘But you know, that’s not going to come back unless we start.’ So I started putting a tie on every time I go trout fishing, and he does the same thing. People have gotten to now where, they say. ‘You must be Frank. We’ve heard about you’, and your tie.

Frank Roden, ready
for a day on the water

“To me, it adds not only the opportunity to stop and talk to somebody because they’re inquisitive. I ran into a fella who said, ‘You’re the best dressed fisherman out here.’ It just opens the door up to conversations and getting to meet people. And you might run into people and end up having dinner together.”

And that leads to the hearing and telling of some outrageous fish stories.

“Some, if they caught as many fish as they said they did, it’d sink the boat,” Roden says.

Roden’s own fly-fishing tale began for him at 13 in some unlikely places – in front of the flicker of a television screen and in a combination Conoco gas station and tackle shop on Highway 77 in Southside.

Roden’s father owned a body and fender shop, where Roden worked on weekends. At lunchtime each Saturday, his Dad would let him run home to watch the ABC outdoor show, American Sportsman. A particular episode featured legendary broadcaster Curt Gowdy fly fishing with an icon of the sport, Lee Wulff.

“That summer, I found a fly-fishing rod. A local shop had a rack full of them. I was having to work to earn my money, and it took me most of the summer to earn the money for the rod and reel.”

Until he had enough money, Roden would go to the service station and watch the rod, tucked among other tackle on the rack, making sure no one bought his coveted fly rod. At one point, he asked his dad for a loan to buy the rod. That is where he learned a life lesson.

“Pop said, ‘You don’t spend it ’til you earn it.’

“I kept working that summer and finally got enough money for my fly rod. I went to the shop and pulled out my wadded-up dollar bills and change, laid them on the counter, I didn’t even know what sales tax was. I just knew how much was marked on the rod.”

Roden remembers only the first name of the man behind the counter – James.

“James said, ‘You took my last rod, you might as well take this’ and put a net on the counter. I was trying to whisper, so that nobody else would overhear that I was broke. I wouldn’t take it. He convinced me to take it. Then he reached and pulled a card of flies off the wall. And laid those down and did the same thing.

“Every Saturday afternoon after that, I’d run up to his shop, take a broom and sweep or run errands, whatever he needed. The afternoon after I got my rod, I went to the lake near home, and I caught 18 bream in an afternoon, and I was hooked ever since.”

Fly fishing is in the midst of something of a revival on the waters of Neely Henry and Logan Martin and the streams of Etowah and St. Clair counties. Places like Big Canoe Creek, Black Creek, Cold Creek upstream and Big Wills Creek. The City of Gadsden has created a winter trout fishery in Black Creek at Noccalula Falls Park, and the city is even promoting fly fishing as part of a tourism push.

He calls Neely Henry and its companion streams “a wonderful venue for fly fishing.”

“There’s a number of streams from the Leesburg Dam to the Ohatchee Dam in the Neely Henry Reservoir. All of these creeks that you run into are good for fly fishing. They all should be explored.”

He had particular praise for the City of Gadsden and its efforts.

“Boy has that been good. It’s been great. We should give them a lot of credit for what they’re doing and for putting the winter trout fishery in.” Greater Gadsden Area Tourism has done a lot to promote the fly fishing here.”

He added a few tips: “On the Coosa River system, what I do, is I look for familiar structure. I will ease along the shoreline and look for fish bedding along the shorelines. I look for busting fish out on the water, nervous water or funneling birds that come down. I’m hunting these fish as much as I’m fishing.”

Roden is like an angling detective probing for clues that will lead him to his catch.

“I’ll tell you what the names of the streams are, but I won’t tell you what rock to stand on. If I tell you what rock to stand on, the mystery is solved.”

Roden is one of the local fly-fishing revival’s chief evangelists. For him, fly fishing is more than a sport.

“It’s more than fishing. It becomes a way of life. This is something that’s going to travel with you throughout life. You may lay that rod down. Twenty years from now, somebody may mention fly fishing and you’ll say, ‘Oh, yeah, I’m a fly fisherman.’ Once you are a fly fisherman, you’re always a fly fisherman.”

It’s a sport that demands patience. Like game hunting, fly fishers have to stalk their prey, matching artificial wet and dry flies to local insects that are food for the fish. As Roden puts it, “You have to match the hatch.” Too, it’s about the cast, the drift, the current, hooking the fish properly and on and on. It is a deliberate sport, where ample patience is as important as an accurate cast.

And then there are the stories. Fish stories, it seems, are as old as Jonah in the Old Testament, tales told on back porches and at dinner tables. Frank Roden loves it all.

“I get carried away listening to ’m because most of them have enough truth in them to sound real.”

In one of his stories from a trip to Canada, Roden was in the zone, catching fish regularly. Nearby, two other anglers struggled, with little to show for their efforts. Ever the sportsman, Roden swapped places with his new acquaintances.

He began where he left off, still catching fish. When his friends asked his secret, Roden had a simple response.

“It may be the tie, guys. I don’t know.”

Editor’s Note: For fly fishing instruction or more information on fly fishing locally, visit the Rainbow City Auction and Fly Shop Facebook page, the Rainbow Fly Fishing Club Facebook page, email rauction@gmail.com or call Frank Roden at 256-490-5450.

Discovering the treasures of the water

When I first saw the photograph of Tori Fricks, not quite age 2, peering out of the famed treasure chest on Logan Martin’s Pirate Island, I knew instantly it had to be our cover shot for the magazine. It was like – pardon the pun – discovering treasure.

Only problem was, what story would go with it? In an instant, I knew that answer, too. Unlike Gilligan and crew who got lost on a three-hour cruise, we decided to take you on a well-guided tour of the islands of Logan Martin and Neely Henry. And we promise not to get you lost!

Island hopping Coosa style is not quite like a Caribbean excursion, but it can be a lot of fun, even educational. Take Pirate Island, for instance. The tiny island, owned by Jim and Laurie Regan, is a huge attraction on Logan Martin. Children head to its buried ‘treasure’ and adults to its festive atmosphere, where they can socialize with other boaters. It’s a natural party on and around the island.

On Neely Henry, there’s Ten Island, named for the series of islands once found there. The historical significance is evident. It’s where Andrew Jackson, Davey Crockett, Sam Houston and Hernando DeSoto were thought to have roamed. Today, it’s where visitors go to swim, fish, picnic and hike.

There’s plenty more inside the tour, but I won’t spoil it. I’ll let you read all about these island adventures yourself.

When you think about it, our lakes are adventures all on their own. There’s always a story to tell, a memory to share.

Frank Roden in Rainbow City has more than his share. He started a fly fishing club – a sport usually found somewhere else, not Alabama. But it’s thriving in Rainbow City thanks to his passion, perseverance and tutelage.

Jessica Thompson has plenty of stories to share, too. She’s a botanical environmentalist and owns Recreative Natives on Logan Martin, which specializes in the propagation of plants native to the Southeast and heirloom vegetables and herbs.

Of course, there’s more in this issue of LakeLife 24/7 Magazine. We’ll take you inside the kitchen of Judi Denard, whose sharing her culinary adventures along with an anecdote or two about her life and her passions.

And then there’s pro bass angler Zeke Gossett, whose adventures on the water up and down the Coosa are legendary. Hop aboard, and he’ll take you on a successful hunt for the big ones.

Remember When takes you back to history being made on the Coosa River and in our state when Neely Henry became an Alabama Power lake. It was part of a new era in Alabama in electric power generation, heightened recreational opportunities, improved quality of life and a sizable economic boost.

On Logan Martin, Lincoln is getting quite a boost with its newest addition now under construction – Lincoln’s Landing. This massive, 38-acre park – 10-lane boat ramp for public and major tournament use, pavilions, beach, walking trail, boardwalk and more on the lake’s main channel – is destined to be a recreational destination point.

Where you find those stories, you’ll find even more in this issue. Come along and discover them all with us.

Little Bridge Marina and Barbecue returns

Story by Elaine Hobson Miller
Photos by Graham Hadley

When fire swept through Little Bridge Marina and Barbecue in October 2020, folks thought the place would go out of business. They didn’t count on the ingenuity of owners Craig Inzer and Curt Vezertzis, who simply renovated the building next door and started over. They ended up with a place that’s bigger, brighter and has great views of the marina. In other words, they pulled a phoenix out of the ashes.

“It was a total loss,” says Inzer of their fire-ravaged former space. “Now we’ve been in business since April 10 in the new building, which really has a totally different feel and vibe. We have 75 seats in-house instead of 30 and outdoor seating with shade. It’s all glass, so we have one of the best views on Neely Henry.”

Little Bridge Barbecue and Marina were born in 2014 when Inzer and Vezertzis, who grew up together, purchased Rainbow Marina and the old Bait Shack, at the corner of Wharton Bend Road and Highway 77, along with some land across the street. Their intention was to do a little bit of work and lease the buildings. They knew it would be a good investment because there wasn’t much commercial waterfront property left on Neely Henry.

“Curt and I grew up on the river,” Inzer says. “We’ve known each other forever.” Something interesting happened while they were renovating the existing buildings, however. People kept coming by and banging on the doors wanting ice, food, drinks and gas. “We decided if all these people needed these things, maybe there’s a need for a marina store here,” Inzer says.

Just in time for the 2014 Riverfest, they filled up the gas tanks and started Little Bridge Marina, which quickly evolved from a hole-in-the-wall to a full-blown marina and barbecue restaurant. “From that point on we covered all the boating needs and were a seven-days-a-week barbecue place, too,” Inzer says. They were geared toward river traffic at first, but soon realized that a lot of folks who had been there before them couldn’t make it year-round because river traffic drops off in the fall. “We knew the food was what was gonna carry us through the winter,” Inzer says.

Business was booming for five years, then COVID-19 came along. They changed and adapted, going to curbside pickup, and had “enormous” boating traffic because people found they could be on the water during the pandemic instead of being hemmed up together at home. Then, the fire hit, and the business partners were back to square one.

“We owned the building next door, which was a former motorcycle, Jet Ski and four-wheeler shop,” Inzer says. “That’s where our bar and grill was. So instead of trying to rebuild on the existing spot, we renovated that other building and were able to move in and be open for business April 10 of 2021.”

Inzer says the old building was more “hole-in-the-wallish,” with two doors, one window and dim lighting. Seating was family-style with whoever happened to be present at three big tables that accommodated eight diners each. The new place is an open, airy space, holds more people and displays the menu on a big-screen television set. It has views of the marina and the two bridges (Little Bridge and Big Bridge) that connect Southside and Rainbow City, not to mention the bikini-clad boaters who tie up at the pier.

“We have barbecue and daily lunch specials, but we’re known for our smoked turkey,” Inzer says. “We serve ribs and homemade desserts, and we sell beer and wine. Down the road, we hope to have bar drinks back.”

Lunch specials are roasted chicken and meatloaf on Mondays, turkey and dressing on Tuesdays, smoked ham on Wednesdays, roasted chicken on Thursdays and smoked brisket on Fridays. Sides for the specials vary from squash casserole to broccoli casserole and baked sweet potato casserole.

They also serve salads, wraps, stuffed potatoes, smoked sausage, traditional nachos and those with pork or chicken piled on top. They have the traditional barbecue sides of baked beans, potato salad and slaw, along with mac-and-cheese, pasta salad, greens and chips.

Desserts include a rotation of peanut butter pie, strawberry pie, banana pudding and fudge pie.

Vezertzis’ mother works there and uses some homemade recipes from her family cookbooks, such as those for chicken salad, pimento cheese, the casseroles and desserts. “We’re here every day, we cook, we clean, we cater, we bus tables, we deliver,” Inzer says. “We’re open 10:30 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Sundays, all year.”

Being on the river gives Little Bridge a different atmosphere than most restaurants. “Having people come in from two different doors makes it kinda different,” Inzer says. “You can come down from church in your Sunday best clothes and have someone in a swimsuit sitting right beside you. Families come off their boats, having been tubing or whatever. People know us and know who is making their food. We get a lot of repeat customers.”

Sgt. Brandon Guffey and Capt. Clay Johnson of the Southside Police Department are regulars at the place. “It’s a lot better now,” Guffey says, meaning since it re-opened after the fire. “There was no view there (next door), and he has
improved the place a lot.” Johnson agrees.

“I like the atmosphere in here. It’s stress-free, being on the water.” Southside City Councilman John Hatley has a similar opinion. “You can’t beat this view,” he says.

Outside on the dock, Imogene Clay and her husband, Ryburn are relaxing under a canopy, watching the boat traffic. Residents of nearby Buck’s Island, they boat over to Little River Bridge every weekend and sometimes during the week. “We used to get gas here, and we’ll be glad when they get it back,” Imogene says. “They have delicious food, too. I had a Greek salad this week that was really good.”

The owners purchased new gas pumps in February, and as of the middle of May, they were still awaiting delivery. “It will be a card-reader system,” Inzer says. “I’m hoping by June it will be up and running. We’re the only family-owned restaurant on Neely Henry Lake, and we’ll be the only seven-day-a-week place you can get gas on Neely Henry once we get the pumps going.”

Through the pandemic and the fire, Inzer and Vezertzis kept six or seven employees on the payroll, helping with the remodeling. “It’s kinda cool,” Inzer says. “I have some employees who have been with me from the very beginning. We’re like a family. We knew we needed them, and they hung in there with us.”

Once the gas pumps are back, the entertainment side of their business will be revived. “We had live music Thursday-Saturday nights,” Inzer says. “It was in a separate building, but now it will be in the same place as the restaurant. We want it to be where you can come up and hang out with the guys or come in with the kids and listen to music.”

Bassmaster Elite Series

Landing big returns for Neely Henry Region

Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by David Smith and submitted photos

When it comes to defining success stories, Greater Gadsden Tourism Executive Director Hugh Stump can sum it up in a four-letter word – bass.

With the Whataburger Bassmasters Elite Series now in the history books as Neely Henry’s first, Stump is all smiles. And why not? “It was a phenomenal success. No question about it,” he said.

The report from Bassmasters is that on the web, live and video streaming, the Elite Series on Neely Henry was “the most watched ever,” including Guntersville, which has hosted four Elite Series and is six times as large an area and has a higher profile reputation. “It really blew us away,” Stump said.

Because of a spring flood on the lake, it delayed opening day by a day, so the weigh-in was on Monday rather than Sunday, but Stump said the extra day did not seem to deter participation. “We had 1,500 people at the weigh-in on a workday,” he said. “It took everyone by storm. It couldn’t have gone any better.”

The City of Gadsden partnered with Tourism to make it happen, with both entities investing a sizable financial stake. “The return was well worth it,” Stump said, noting that fishing from Coosa Landing already has a $10 million annual economic impact on the region, and that does not include fishing

tournaments from other ramps in the area. “We can’t do it without the city’s help.” From the financial investment to logistics and labor, the city was a perfect complement in the partnership and is poised to reel in the benefits.

A good regional tournament, he explained, brings in about $100,000 to $250,000 per weekend. With the national exposure the Elite brought to Neely Henry – television, social media, live streaming and web traffic – Neely Henry is on the map.

The anglers especially “loved the Coosa spotted bass. They said it was a 1.5-pound fish that fought like an 8 pounder. They called it the fight of their bass lives. They liked that everything was close by – shopping lodging, restaurants within miles of the ramp,” which bodes well for return visits.

The $100,000 prize offered plenty of incentive for the pros to want to come back, too.

“Hotels, businesses and restaurants did great,” Stump noted. “It hit all the check marks. It brought people in, got national TV and social media attention. More than 5 million minutes of video was viewed on Bassmasters Live.

Catching fish on Neely Henry is the name of the game. Now we’re known for catching fish.”

The Elite Series was able to “highlight Neely Henry to a national audience, and that was our intent,” Stump said. “We’re getting the word out that there’s good fishing here.” A lot of local anglers tuned in, too. The winning catch was 16.5 pounds, the same as everyday anglers.

While the Elite Series was a first for Neely Henry, its partnership with BASS is not. For the past few years, Stump and Tourism have been working with BASS, and Neely Henry was able to land a Bassmasters Open, which brought in 172 boats and 300 anglers. “It’s the second to top tier of the BASS line of tournaments. The Elite is the top.”

The Open had other advantages besides the numbers it lured to the area. With the Open, there is no ‘off limits’ time as in the Elite. Anglers came in 10 days before the tournament and spent the week here, pumping additional money into the economy.

The future continues to look good for Neely Henry and the impact of bass fishing. Just ask Wes Logan of Springville, the Elite Series winner who has fished the lake since he was 5. He already thought the fishing on Neely Henry was good. After pocketing his winnings, he now has 100,000 more reasons to know it’s true.

Snow Biz served on the water

When adults pull their boats up to one of Snobiz Shaved Ice’s floating vessels, they act like they are just buying for their kids. It doesn’t take long, however, for them to order some for themselves.

“They see how good they look and taste their kids’ cones, and they get one, too,” says Matt Kronen, co-owner of Snobiz. “Everybody likes a treat on a hot day.”

Kronen and his business partner, Tarang Gandhakwla, started selling shaved ice or snow cones on Logan Martin Lake four years ago. Their “fleet” consists of two boats. For one, Kronen took an old pontoon boat, tore it down to its frame and rebuilt it. They purchased an existing snow cone boat that had been used on Lake Martin already. One of their boats is yellow and is anchored at the mouth of Clear Creek on the main channel. The orange boat travels between Pirate Island and the park at the Logan Martin Dam. In addition, the partners sell shaved ices out of their newest venture (this one, on land), Piece of the Pie, a pizza parlor at their Coosa Island Marina.

“The yellow boat also carries boiled peanuts, hot dogs, ice cream and canned soft drinks,” Kronen says.

He says their shaved ice business grows a little more each year, which is one reason they expanded into the pizza operation. “We have a ton of loyal shaved ice customers who have been really good to us,” he says.

People hold onto their own boats as they reach for the cones, then pull away to eat them. (No boarding of the snow cone vessels is allowed.) Generators power the freezers that keep the ice frozen. Flavors include banana, birthday cake, blue raspberry, peach, piña colada, watermelon and tiger’s blood. The latter is a popular branded flavor that combines strawberry and coconut. Cones come in just one size. “We had several sizes to begin with, but we learned it was best to keep it simple,” Kronen says. It’s not unusual, he adds, to sell one snow cone with two or three spoons.

People used to be surprised to see the shaved ice watercraft, but now if they come out and don’t see them, Kronen starts getting phone calls. “We’re the only floating shaved ice business on the lake,” he says. “We were the only shaved ice around here at all until recently, and we’re still the only ones physically on the water.”

Folks can get lake necessities, snacks and drinks at Kronen’s Coosa Island Marina, which also features boat self-storage and valet storage. “Really, we’ll put their boats in the water and take them out,” Kronen says. They lease pontoon boats, and Kronen vows they are the only place on Logan Martin that do personal watercraft rentals.

“We’ve had a bunch of people who have posted photos on our Facebook page of their kids enjoying the cones,” Kronen says.

Snobiz is open only on Saturdays and Sundays, plus Mondays on holiday weekends, from Memorial Day through Labor Day, from11 a.m. until 5 p.m.

So, what’s the next venture for this business partnership?

“Who knows?” Kronen says. “But I’ll tell you this: We’re always looking for help. It’s way harder to find help for this type of business than you would think.”