Boating – LakeLife 24/7 Magazine

Boo Bash 2026

The most fun you can have on Logan Martin Lake all year

Story by Roxann Edsall
Submitted Photos

It’s grown faster than kudzu on an abandoned hillside, but this growth has been far more welcome. Boo Bash on Logan Martin, the annual dockside trick-or-treating event, has exploded in popularity since its inception in 2022.

From 140 little goblins and their adults the first year to last year’s impressive 2,300 trick-or-treaters, it is clear the event is one people don’t want to miss. Mark your calendars now for Oct. 3from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

There have been a few changes since the first year, and still more are in store for next month’s event. There will be trophies this year for first, second and third place in the pier decorating contest and for the costume contest.

Each pier will be assigned a number at registration to display on their pier or dock so that judges will be able to record their evaluations. “Angie Henson, who is the owner of Bikini Buddies is donating the trophies, said organizer Kelli Lasseter. “I’ve seen her concepts, and they’re really cool.”

The boat decorating contest from last year will be back again by popular demand. Once again, boats will need to register for that competition. Judging will be held at Lakeside Park.

This year, a costume contest will be held following Boo Bash at an after party at Tiki Hut, which will host a live band. Tiki Hut, which normally closes for the season after Labor Day, will be decorated for the event with a 28-foot pumpkin perfect for photo ops. “We get a lot of families coming in after Boo Bash,” said Michael Emerick, Tiki Hut manager. “Many of the kids have come out of their costumes by then and go swimming or to the play area.”

In their third year as title sponsor for the event, Tiki Hut helps to promote the event and its mission to help fund lake safety measures through Logan Martin Lake Protection Association (LMLPA). “It’s a good way to give back to the lake,” adds Emerick. “It gets families together to do something different on the lake and makes the lake a safer place with the LMLPA donation.”

Through sponsorships, Lasseter, co-organizer Sonya Hubbard and their “Boo Crew” are able to make significant contributions to LMLPA, which the organization uses to purchase lighted buoys to place in shallow or hazardous spots in the lake. Last year, Boo Bash presented LMLPA a check for $12,000 for their lighted buoy program.

The partnership with LMLPA began in 2024 after Lasseter met Blair Goodgame. “Blair was just phenomenal in helping us to come up with a solid marketing plan and how to partner with the city.” Goodgame connected Lasseter and Hubbard to Jeff Thompson, Pell City’s Community Engagement and Special Projects manager.

From that meeting came the addition of the Boo Slough at Lakeside Park, enabling those who either don’t want to get on the water or do not have access to a boat the chance to participate in Boo Bash. “Pell City really puts their resources into supporting Boo Bash and LMLPA,” said Lasseter.

The idea that developed into Boo Bash began five years ago when Lasseter and Hubbard were reminiscing about fun times they’d had years ago at a large neighborhood Halloween event in Leeds. They wondered if such a thing might work on the lake. “We were like, I wonder if people would want to do that by boat and maybe decorate their piers,” explained Lasseter.

After floating the idea on Facebook and getting a positive response, they got to work planning. Boo Bash was an instant hit. “I’ve heard of people bringing groups out on their boats to participate,” said Lasseter. “I’ve been told stories of families coming in from out of state for this and to spend the weekend with their family. There are some places that have community piers and potlucks.”

Community is why the Boo Crew works so hard to put on Boo Bash and it’s the very reason it works. “I think people up here enjoy a fun time on the water,” Lasseter adds. “They enjoy being around each other. I think we’re all about community. It’s part of the culture of Logan Martin Lake.”

It takes many in the community to make Boo Bash happen. Lasseter credits the many pier hosts, sponsors, and volunteers who make it work. Volunteers, she emphasized, are the only way they were able to make it past year two. “Without them, we would have had to stop,” she admits. “We have so much gratitude for everyone who is providing their resources out of pocket to bring this event to the community.”

“And when you hear a child say something like ‘this is the absolute best day of my life,” that’s not because of Kelli Lasseter or Sonya Hubbard or LMLPA or the city,” says Lasseter. “That’s because of our pier hosts creating such a memorable event.”

Pier hosts decorate their boathouses or docks in a Halloween theme and hand out treats to children on visiting boats. Often there are treats for boat dogs and for adults onboard. Getting the treats onto the boat takes a particular skill set or a specially designed “conveyance device” like a long-handled pool net.

There were 80 pier hosts for last year, down slightly from the year before. Two volunteers are specifically working on increasing the number of pier hosts, particularly in the upper end of the lake closer to Riverside and Lincoln. In response to feedback from pier hosts, the event time has been condensed to three hours, rather than four.

As with any event on the water, safety is a huge concern. Organizers have requested additional presence from ALEA to patrol the waters during the event. “Safety is absolutely number one,” stresses Lasseter. “If something happened connected to this event, there’d be no more Boo Bash and, you know, it would be devastating.”

The Boo Crew is excited to put the final touches on Boo Bash 2026. As it grows, Lasseter stresses that they want to maintain the integrity and spirit of the event – creating a joyous event for children, families and pets. It’s a chance to have fun with lake community and to enjoy a “last hurrah” for the lake season.

Buoy, oh buoy

LMLPA hits milestone with 100th buoy

Story by Roxanne Edsall
Photos courtesy of LMLPA

A new sentinel stands watch over the waters of Logan Martin Lake. Weighing in at just over 100 pounds, this guardian of the waters illuminates a danger lurking below the surface, a danger that could put lives and property at risk.

This new harbinger of hazards is the 100^th lighted buoy installed by members of Logan Martin Lake Protection Association (LMLPA).

In a 2024 report, the most recent statistics from the U.S. Coast Guard show collision with a fixed object, above or below the surface of the water was the number one reason for boating accidents nationwide, with grounding being third on the list.

Buoy 100 is marked July 7, 2026 with all the signatures underneath that

The report showed there were 17 incidents of collision with a fixed object and 12 grounding incidents in Alabama. Because of statistics like these and wanting to make every effort to increase safety on Logan Martin, members of LMLPA began working on a project to replace old safety buoys with lighted ones that could be seen both day and night.

The project began in 2019 as members began raising money to purchase the buoys, solar light kits, cables, hardware and cement anchors. Their goal was to raise enough cash to install 100 lighted buoys. The process has been lengthy, and the costs have risen each year. It costs LMLPA almost $800 per buoy installed.

“We have been fortunate to have a lot of these buoys sponsored by individuals, groups, or grants to help us cover the cost,” said LMLPA President Neal Stephenson. “People can sponsor a buoy online at www.lmlpa.org. Click on the dropdown ‘What We Do’ tab and go to buoy installation to donate.”

This is the third year in partnership with Boo Bash on Logan Martin. Since 2024, the organizers of Boo Bash have made LMLPA the beneficiary of the sponsorship funds that exceeded the cost of putting on Boo Bash, giving the lake protection association a much-needed financial shot in the arm.

“Our partnership with Boo Bash has been a great experience, and it provides an opportunity to support our programs at LMLPA while having fun trick-or-treating on the lake,” said Stephenson. “The event has sponsored thousands of dollars for the buoy program.”

Dee Parsons and David Carboni were on the crew to set buoy number one and again on number 100. Carboni believes it’s the most instrumental thing being done for lake safety. “Before this, people were just dropping pins and sharing locations of dangerous places on the lake,” said Carboni. “Now we have these lighted safety buoys with GPS locations.”

Parsons echoes the appreciation for GPS locating, as it makes the buoys easier to reposition when they drift away from the hazard they were intended to mark. He’s grateful to have been a part of the process from the beginning. “It makes me happy to have been involved in all 100,” said Parsons. “It has boosted morale [for LMLPA] because members are excited about what’s going on.”

Randy Sparks is the buoy boat captain and oversees the program for LMLPA. He describes the process involved in getting new buoys ready to launch. “All have to be drilled and fitted for lights. We add the lights and get them on the boat and take them to the predetermined place,” Sparks said. “Then we measure the depth of the water there and cut a piece of stainless-steel cable to fit that depth with a foot extra for each end and an extra five feet of cable to make sure it doesn’t float off.

“We attach it to a five-gallon bucket of concrete provided by Alabama Power with a stainless-steel eye bolt,” he added. “Then we drop the buoy and anchor bucket together off the side of the boat. We get the GPS coordinates, so we know exactly where it is located, and we log them into Navionics, and we let the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) know where they are.”

For hazard buoy locations, the LMLPA team identifies a hazard using personal experiences, feedback from boaters and property owners, and direction from ALEA. Those hazards could be old roadbeds, subsurface rocks, boulders or shallow places or points that come out into the lake. “When we identify these,” explained Stephenson, “we drop those buoys to let boaters know of the hazard, so they won’t get hurt or damage their boats.”

They put out both hazard buoys and no-wake buoys, but the second type is strictly regulated by ALEA. “We always have everyone wanting us to put no-wake buoys out, but we can’t do that unless ALEA directs that,” Sparks noted. Those wanting no-wake buoys need to contact ALEA to get that approval. If approved, LMLPA can put that location on the list for future buoy placement.

Sparks also explained why having launched 100 buoys, there are actually fewer than that in the water right now. “Some of the older ones have had to be pulled out because they are no longer functioning. Sometimes they float off or get damaged.

“We just ask that people be respectful of the buoys,” he added. “We’re a nonprofit, and we’re trying to make the money raised go as far as possible. We have a phone number on each buoy, so if something happens to damage it and someone finds it, they can call us and we can get it back. Then we evaluate it to see if we can fix it or reuse it or if it just needs to be replaced.”

Bud Kitchin is a former LMLPA president and has been involved in the buoy project since its inception. “The thing I’ve learned since starting this project,” said Kitchin, “is that the lifespan of a buoy is not five years like we originally thought. It’s more like two to three years. LMLPA will always be raising funds to support this program and keep Logan Martin Lake safe.”

Bridge marker project underway, too

In addition to replacing buoys and adding new ones, LMLPA has added another safety-inspired project this year. They are installing reflective bridge caution signs on the pilings for all the bridges that go over Logan Martin Lake. Their goal is to get signs on all of the bridge pilings in the next couple of years, a goal that will require them to purchase and install 100 signs.

In 2017, two people were seriously injured when their boat struck the piling of Riverside’s railroad bridge in the dark of night. Protecting boaters from just such nighttime dangers is the reason LMLPA is making the bridge safety sign project a priority. “Safety is our primary mission,” Stephenson said. “These signs are fluorescent yellow and are reflective in low-light conditions. We want to make the lake safer for all.”

The signs will be placed on the upstream and downstream sides of the Riverside Railroad Bridge, Highway 78 Bridge, Stemley Bridge, Renfroe Road, Choccolocco Creek and Poor House. The cost of $80 per sign takes care of materials needed for installation. The labor is provided by volunteers, who plan installation runs every two weeks.

Installing the bridge signs comes with an interesting challenge, according to Parsons. “The problem is that the current runs. So, on one side, it’s easy. On the other side you’re constantly having to push away from the piling.”

In addition to the lighted buoy and bridge reflector sign programs, LMLPA runs a water testing program to monitor the safety of the lake and runs the annual lake cleanup effort each spring. They also offer educational and community outreach programs.

Membership in the organization helps pay for projects and provides additional hands to manage those projects. For more information, check them out at www.lmlpa.org.

Birmingham Sailing Club

A Logan Martin tradition since the lake began

Story by Paul South
Photos by David Smith
Courtesy of Birmingham Sailing Club

As fall approaches, bringing with it cooler winds sometimes brisk or minutes later a weak whisper, the Birmingham Sailing Club has charted a course for a busy schedule.

And as the days in 2026 dwindle down to a precious few, Logan Martin Lake gives sailors a unique challenge.

“The winds can shift quite a bit,” Birmingham Sailing Club Commodore Richard May said. “They can shift 90 degrees or 180 degrees at times. You can have gusts you have to deal with. The shifting winds and gusting winds are a problem – and sometimes no wind.”

Competition, fun and making a difference

Leading off this fall for the club is September’s Leukemia Cup Regatta. The event actually began on Logan Martin at the old Marina Bay Yacht Club, which later merged with the BSC in the late 1990s. The event is a major fundraiser for leukemia research that blossomed into a national event.

“It started here on our lake and then it became a national event all over the country,” May said. “After COVID hit, a lot of clubs stopped doing it, but we decided to keep doing ours. (Blood Cancer United, the former Leukemia Lymphoma Society) is glad to get the money.”

The fundraiser is fueled by member donations, live and silent auctions.

The regatta began at Marina Bay to honor a member who died from the dreaded disease. This year’s Leukemia Cup Regatta is set for Sept. 12 at the club.

While it just passed, one event that deserves mention, the Rock, Paper Scissors Regatta for youth sailors was held on Aug. 29-30, attracting some 50 sailors and their parents, the club’s future generations. There’s also a post-race rock, paper scissors game.

“It’s truly a nice event,” May said. “The kids have a really good time.”

Here’s a look at other fall and winter events:

Fall Adult Learn to Sail: One of the club’s major initiatives is to grow the sport of sailing through instruction. On Sept. 19-20, adults can learn to sail. The course combines classroom instruction and time on the water. UAB professor Jack Rogers teaches the class.

Moonlight Cruise: On Sept. 26, the club hosts an evening cruise, an event as much social as sailing. The informal cruise, featuring many of the club’s keel boat sailors go out late in the evening and sail together in an unofficial club event.

Great Pumpkin Regatta: Good grief, Charlie Brown! On Oct. 17, Thistle class sailors from across the Southeast and beyond come to the lake to compete in the annual event. A Thistle is a high performance, one-design boat that’s considered “fun, fast and responsive,” according to the Thistle Class Association.

“We have a circuit of all the clubs in the Southeast district, and they’ll travel to the different regattas and compete against each other,” May said. Clubs like the Lake Lanier Sailing Club, the Atlanta Yacht Club and Muscle Shoals Sailing Club are among expected competitors. All are part of the Southeastern Thistle District.

Sailing teams up with succulent culinary delights on Nov. 14 when the club hosts its Oyster Roast-One day Regatta.

The Great Scot Regatta: On Oct. 24-25, the Great Scot Regatta launches its annual race, sanctioned by the Flying Scot Association. The Flying Scot class is a 19-foot, one-design boat designed in 1957. Considered virtually unsinkable, the craft is perfect for novice sailors.

And ending the calendar year with something merry and bright, the club hosts its annual Christmas One-Day Regatta on Dec. 12.

A storied history

As the club notes on its website, before 1960, sailing was a passion for only a handful of enthusiasts from the Birmingham area, willing to travel for hours searching for fair winds

and following waters.

But Alabama Power’s construction of Logan Martin Dam sparked a sea change in sailing’s fortunes in the Birmingham area, thanks to Thistle Class sailors Sam Caldwell and Herb Hagler.

With Alabama Power maps in hand, Caldwell combed St. Clair County’s backroads, searching for a place for the new Birmingham Sailing Club. He found the spot in Vincent near the dam on the St. Clair County side of the lake. The purchase was completed in December, 1962.

The club was incorporated in June, 1963, with 44 charter members. Construction on the clubhouse, ramps and docks began in late 1963, and the club’s first boats launched on July 16, 1964.

Since then, the club has not only been home to recreational and competitive sailing, but its membership has made its mark in regional and national racing.

“All of the current members really appreciate those founding members, the way they set the club up and bought the property outright,” May said. “There’s hardly a year that goes by that people don’t express their gratefulness to those founding members that conceived of the club.”

An annual Spring race – The Caldwell Cup Regatta – is named for Sam Caldwell, who died in 2012.

Fifty-year members

The Caldwell Cup is not the only homage to the club’s founder. His children come to the regatta annually. And in a bit of sailing serendipity, two 50-year members – Stan and Donna Graham – bought Caldwell’s Thistle, keeping it in the family, so to speak.

The couple fell in love with the sport thanks to a Learn-to-Sail class at UAB, and field trips to the Birmingham Sailing Club turned a spark into a flame.

“By the time of the field trips to the club, we had already bought a boat,” Graham said. “It was Sam Caldwell’s Thistle, 2416.”

But the lure of sailing may have been cast by Graham’s father, years before.

“When I was growing up, my Dad told me I needed to find a hobby that I could participate in my whole life. You play football, and then that’s over. You play tennis, and you get old and can’t do that anymore Doggone, this sailing just got me,” Graham said.

The couple, now Flying Scot sailors, would spend Saturdays at the club practicing techniques found in sailing publications.

“We would practice all the time, when it was just me and her,” Graham said. “Not many spouses could get along well enough to be in a small boat and be competitive. Donna and I would get into small skirmishes, but we sailed hard.”

So in love was the couple with sailing that they’d pitch a tent near the clubhouse on weekends and spend the night, readying for Sunday races. And post-race, Graham kept a diary of each race.

The club has a proud tradition of competitive sailing.

“You look back over the (history of) the Southeast District that we were in, a lot of Birmingham sailors were champions of the Southeast District. So when we would go out on Sunday, we were racing against some of the best people in the Southeast. You had to get better, or go home,” Graham said. “And we got better.”

The couple took a few years away from sailing after the birth of their daughter, Laura. Years later, while taking graduate courses at UAB, the daughter took up sailing. So a family tradition continues.

“Laura was like a little bird, came back to the nest, the Birmingham Sailing Club. That brought us back,” Graham said.

A strong bond

The sailing community has a strong sense of camaraderie. This year, Birmingham’s sailing community, as well as the legal community, suffered a terrible loss when past BSC Commodore Bill North, a Jefferson County prosecutor, passed away over the summer.

“He was a great guy,” May said. “We will really miss him. He was a friend. It’s hard to believe (he’s gone), actually.”

With North’s loss, the year’s events take on added significance, May said.

“I think so,” he said. “We had a long-distance race called the Firecracker. There were a lot of people that were there. You could kind of tell there was a little more meaning to the get-together after the race.”

Across the club’s more than 60 years, a common theme rings like a bell down through the years.

“Just how much fun sailing and the camaraderie with other sailors that there is,” May said. “We go out and compete hard against each other and talk about it and have a good time. It’s a nice relationship.”

He added, “Sometimes we’ll be sailing against each other, and then we’ll be sailing with each other.”

For Stan and Donna Graham, it all goes back to their first boat, Sam Caldwell’s Thistle. Graham now finds and repairs old boats to help newcomers bitten by the sailing bug as he and Donna were a half-century ago. It’s an example of how the club warmly welcomes newcomers to the sport.

“If we had not found Sam’s boat, we might have lost interest,” Graham said.

For more information about the Birmingham Sailing Club, visit https://www.birminghamsailingclub.org.