Reeling in a brighter future for Lincoln and region
Story by Carol Pappas Submitted photos
Rising from the banks of a main channel stretch of Logan Martin Lake in the small city of Lincoln lies the future of an entire region.
That’s what officials see in the reflection of a massive investment taking root on 100 acres adjacent to Lincoln’s Landing, a 40-acre fishing park quickly becoming a destination point in its own right. Couple it with Angler’s Pointe, the $30-million residential, recreation and entertainment community now under construction next door, and together, they become a destination spot from all kinds of points inside and well beyond Alabama’s borders.
McCaig & Griffin, a lakeside and commercial development company based in Lincoln, is creating an exclusive waterfront resort with a mix of cottages, RV lots, a swimming pool, an amphitheater-anchored entertainment district of food trucks, arts and crafts and other vendors plus a stage and seating for performances. Dubbed The Yard, the entertainment district is the centerpiece of the project.
McCaig & Griffin CEO DeLane Griffin calls it a return to typically Southern hospitality, reminiscent of families and friends gathering in the back yard while children played and the adults enjoyed the fellowship of their neighbors.
“It will be a relaxed environment,” he said, a place to get away from “the chaos that is the rest of the world and make it disappear for a little while. That’s what I see in my mind – a return to true Southern hospitality.”
Just next door, Lincoln’s Landing, features a world class tournament fishing park, pavilions, a 10-boat launch into the main channel and a boardwalk with fishing piers and boat slips. Plenty of parking accommodates the crowds. Coming in the next phase is a swimming beach. When complete, the park will be a venue for reunions, weddings, get-togethers and other celebrations.
The vision began when the City of Lincoln was considering the 40 acres where the fishing park is now. “We talked about the fishing park and what they wanted, and it became apparent what they were going to need – places for people to stay, something for the families of anglers and recreation,” recalled Griffin.
He and his partners own other lake developments in the area – River Bay, Waterfront and Blue Eye communities, where they have made vast improvements to enhance them for residents.
Layout of the development
As the vision for Angler’s Pointe began to take shape, “we saw it as a community, a resort to serve everyone, not just the fishermen,” he said.
In March, the Lincoln City Council approved rezoning for the property, and creation of plots and appraisals followed. Model cottages are being built now for pre-sale.
Angler’s Pointe will be developed in two phases. Phase I is one- and two-bedroom cottages, 800 to 1,000 square feet – and covered RV lots plus the entertainment district. Phase II is a continuation of the cottages and RV lots. It will become a resort with all the amenities and aesthetics of lake life. In total, there will be 118 RV spots and 203 cottages.
“People from all over the country will be coming to fish here, and we’re not even touching the surface of realizing what it will be,” Griffin said. “This will be a destination point that draws people here.”
Lincoln Mayor Lew Watson couldn’t agree more. “We built the park with the idea to attract more business at the same time,” he said. Angler’s Pointe is “the perfect complement to Lincoln’s Landing. It’s designed to support it. It takes care of lodging needs for people to enjoy the lake. It will bring more people in, attract more business and reinforce Lincoln’s Landing.”
The mayor said he could not have envisioned a better neighbor to the city’s development, which has already exceeded expectations. “We had no idea we would be booking this many tournaments, he said, noting that they have already landed bookings as far ahead as 2024.
And the vision that included more business, like hotels and sit-down restaurants is indeed beginning to have a ripple effect from Lincoln’s Landing and Angler’s Pointe, the mayor said.
“We are beginning to get some attention in that area – a good sign of the efforts.” Likening it to fishing, Watson reasoned, “You have to have good bait. We’re seeing the cork bobbling now, and we’re getting some nibbles.”
Councilman Joey Callahan called the area a “transformation to a recreational family environment that is an asset to the city. It’s a place people can come to on Logan Martin, buy a cabin to rent or stay the weekend. It’s huge for Lincoln and for the whole area.”
It’s bigger than Lincoln, he said. “Spending has a regional impact. We benefit from each other.”
Echoing the sentiment, Councilman Brandon Tate, in whose district the developments lie, called it an asset for the entire county and the state of Alabama. In the short term, “it’s already making a huge impact. There’s lots of interest and people coming in.”
Long term, he sees more good things ahead. Pointing to the developments side by side, he expressed gratitude to Griffin and his company for “seeing the vision and planning a premier, luxury” destination to go with it. “We’re excited to see this happening next to our world-class facility.”
An added benefit, he noted, is a local company undertaking the investment. Griffin has a proven track record in the area, and his experience and understanding will serve the development and the city well. “DeLane and his team are perfect for this. The vision is there, and they will be mirroring what we’re trying to do out there.”
Looking toward the future, Tate said, “Lincoln was already on the map in my mind. This definitely puts it up there with everybody else.”
“DeLane is a visionary,” said Councilwoman Jennie Jones. “That man amazes me.” She, too, sees the future in a brighter light because of Lincoln’s Landing and Angler’s Pointe. There may be other attractions nearby, like Talladega Superspeedway and Barber Motorsports Park, but fishing is a sport that lasts all year long. The impact will be felt throughout the year, too, she said.
“The citizens will benefit,” Jones added, explaining that restaurants and hotels and tourism dollars will follow to meet the needs of anglers. Easy access from Interstate 20 is a plus, and observers should see a sizable economic impact on the entire area. “I’m excited about it. Very excited.”
Robinson eyes the city’s new lake neighborhood as a “win, win, win. This is a win for everybody. It complements the park in such a way that fishermen can stay a stone’s throw away from the park. They can keep their boat in the water and don’t have to launch again.”
As for Angler’s Pointe, “they are just steps away from an attraction to support it.” It checks the boxes for lodging and entertainment needs, and golf cart trails illustrate the close connection between the two developments.
The design of the cabins and RV sites complement Lincoln’s Landing, Robinson said. “It’s a no-brainer that the city would support it. It is only going to complement what we have.”
Body low, head down, eyes ahead. You see the hill approaching fast. Downshifting, you begin your ascent and keep pumping. Halfway up the hill, calves, quads, hamstrings and glutes burning, you hit the button once, then twice. Immediately, the bike takes over and the pedals cease their attack on your muscles. You ascend the hill with only as much effort as you want to put into it. Welcome to the world of electric biking!
Electric bicycles are being spotted all around Logan Martin, echoing the explosion of sales around the country. The growth has been fueled, at least in part, by the pandemic, as people shy away from mass transportation and find alternatives for getting around. According to market researcher NPD Group, eBike sales shot up 240% in the 12 months leading up to July 2021. Industry experts predict that upward trend to hold as people continue to spend more time outdoors.
Around the lake, it’s all about having something else fun to do outdoors. Darrell Spears pledges to emphasize the fun in all aspects of electric biking, including the purchasing process.
Electric bikes have come to Logan Martin Lake.
The owner of Logan Martin Electrek, he hopes to help people navigate the world of electric bikes and build the eBike community on Logan Martin Lake. After retiring from the Army, he began looking into purchasing an electric bike to get outside and enjoy areas around Logan Martin.
“Doing research, I went down quite a few rabbit holes,” Spears explains. “There’s a lot to sift through, tons of information and choices to make.” He ended up buying online and making what he describes as “not the best decision for me.
“It’s such a weird business model,” says Spears. “When I went to a regular bike shop, I realized their focus is on selling the bikes they have. I don’t have a storefront, so I find out what’s the best fit for the rider to help them buy the bike that’s most suited to them and what they want to do with it.”
He does this by offering an eBike consulting service. The customer contacts Logan Martin Electrek and fills out a survey to describe their wants and needs. Spears meets the customer in the location where they would be riding the bike and finds out more specific needs and preferences.
At that time, the customer has a chance to try out several test bikes. The consultation and ride are included in the $100 fee, which ends with the customer receiving an emailed consultation report outlining Spears’ recommendations. The fee is applied to the price of a bike, if the customer decides to purchase through Spears.
“I include a lot in the consultation and test ride,” says Spears. “So, it is well worth the money. If I had done this before buying my first bike, I would have made a much better choice.” He insists that it’s fine if you don’t buy from him. You can use the information to purchase elsewhere or online or not buy at all. He just wants to be sure if you do buy, you get the bike that best fits you and your needs.
Spears describes the variables in the eBike buying process. The questions begin with where you want to ride an electric bike and how experienced you are with biking. Then there’s the shape and style you might be interested in.
Do you like a cruiser style or a mountain bike style? Do you prefer a step-over or step-through frame? Are you an upright rider or more aggressive? Are you looking for a hub-drive a mid-drive? And that’s just the beginning. “There are so many variables, but if we get the right fit, it’s more likely that the rider will use the bike and enjoy the experience,” assures Spears, emphasizing the value of his business model.
Martha Davenport and her partner, John Moberg, recently went through the buying process, guided by Spears. An avid cyclist, Martha began having trouble with one of her knees to the extent that she was no longer able to ride her bicycle.
Moberg pushed to investigate the electric bike option for her. “John’s wanted an electric bike and has been researching them for years. Darrell made the process simple,” says Davenport. “He even came over the second day after we got the bikes and showed us several additional features, like how to operate the pedal assist, which is so great!”
She, Moberg and her dog, Gizmo, live at Logan’s Landing Campground and love to take their eBikes out around the lake every day it’s not raining. (Most models are safe to operate in the rain, although models with a built-in charger are not.) They’ve recently purchased a bike rack for John’s car so they can take the bikes to different locations.
“With my knee injury, I never thought I’d be able to ride a bike again,” adds Davenport. “Having an electric bike has really made a difference for me. I love being able to ride again.”
Pell City Parks and Recreation maintenance crewmember John Richardson, and his wife, Melissa, have had two eBikes for about a year. His wife also has issues with her knees. “We like them because they’re easy. If you want to pedal, you can. If you don’t, you don’t have to,” says Richardson. “We use them camping and when we go to the beach. They’re great!” While they bought before Spears opened his business, Richardson was happy to hear about it for others in the market.
Even if you’re an avid standard cyclist, there are benefits to electric bicycles. “The frequently used metric is ‘2x you’ and ‘4x you,’ meaning they can put out two to four times the normal power a rider will put into a bike for a distance of 20 to 80 miles, based on terrain, user input, motor size and battery,” Spears explains.
So, if you want to get more distance with less effort, eBikes may be a good option. And, for those wanting more exercise, industry leaders say most people ride farther because it’s easier, and they end up getting as much or more exercise than they did riding a non-motorized bicycle.
Electric Bike controls and dashboard
Electric bicycles are, clearly, a major purchase, starting north of $1,000 and up to $10,000, depending on models and options. Most eBikes come with a battery warranty of between two and five years. The charge typically lasts about 40 miles, depending on how much use the motor gets during the ride. It usually takes about six hours to charge using 120 volts.
How fast you can go depends on the class. Electric bikes are divided into Class 1, up to 20 mph with no throttle and motor kicks in when the rider is pedaling; Class 2, up to 20 mph with throttle and can be used when rider is not pedaling; and Class 3, up to 28 mph with or without throttle and requires the rider to pedal.
That price may sting a bit less if President Joe Biden’s $1.75-million Build Back Better bill passes. The bill includes a 30% tax incentive on the purchase of eBikes with price tags under $4,000, with the goal of helping to reduce carbon emissions by replacing gasoline-powered cars with electric options, including electric bikes.
A desire to encourage environmental responsibility and the ability to ride bikes again after a physical injury or limitation top the list of reasons for getting an electric bike.
But the number one reason, according to Spears, is fun, adding, “It lets you be 15 again!” As he nears his 50th birthday, Spears even traded his plans for a motorcycle cross-country trip in favor of a coast-to-coast eBike ride. In late spring or early fall, he plans to fly out to California and ride an electric bike from the Pacific Coast to the Atlantic Coast.
Spears loves the Logan Martin Lake community. He retired in Alabama to be near his two boys, Jonathan, now at the University of Alabama, and Chase, who’s at Jacksonville State University.
He tells the story of when he was looking for a house to buy a few years ago and drove around the lake constantly on the search. One day he drove down a long driveway, thinking it was a road and had to pull off when a car approached coming the other way.
“I talked to this guy for a long time about the area. He was super nice and even invited me to the Rotary Club. He was just about as gracious a person as I have ever met.” Turns out the friendly fellow was Elmer Harris, former CEO of Alabama Power, the company that created Logan Martin.
Spears has started an electric biking group to help build the eBiking community. The group gets together the last Sunday of each month. Their last ride was Bull’s Gap trail in the Talladega National Forest, but he’s always checking out other trip options.
Editor’s Note:For more information on the biking group or to book an eBike consultation, check out their Logan Martin Electrek Facebook page or go to www.lmelectrek.com.
When Brenda Reaves and her daughter set out to compile a cookbook for a family reunion in 2008, they asked everyone to contribute some of their tried-and-true recipes. They wanted a variety of dishes – everything from meats and vegetables to casseroles and desserts – and only one rule applied: “We said don’t give us the recipe you wish you could cook, give us the recipe you always cook,” Brenda said.
The result is a mouth-watering collection of offerings including sausage balls, biscuits, chicken and dressing, red velvet cake, squash casserole and macaroni and cheese. “We do country cooking,” Brenda said. “I like to cook like my grandmother and mother cooked.”
These days, Brenda does her cooking from the kitchen of the family’s Neely Henry Lake home, where they have lived for seven years. “We originally thought it would be just a weekend place, but the more we were here, the more we didn’t want to be anywhere else,” she said. “It just seems like being on vacation all the time.”
As a result, the focus is always on good food and great fun. Brenda and her husband, Tony, love spending time with family, neighbors and friends at the home they’ve dubbed the Coosa Loosa Lodge and Marina. “We’re kind of known for a having a lot of people over,” Brenda said. “We can cook for a crowd easier than we can cook for two.”
Home cooking
Brenda’s love for good home cooking can be traced back to visits with her grandparents, Rosetta and Bud Wood, affectionately known as Mama Bill and Uncle Bud. “Mama Bill served three meals a day most days,” Brenda wrote in the forward of the Wood Family Cookbook. “Chicken and dumplins were one of my favorites and still are. Fried potatoes, sliced not diced, with lots of black pepper were on the menu quite often. If you were lucky, you were there when there was a peach, apple or blackberry cobbler.”
Many years ago, the family started hosting a reunion in October to celebrate Mama Bill’s mother’s birthday and “since that time, every year on the second Saturday in October, we honor Mama Bill and Uncle Bud’s memory by getting together as a family and visiting and eating,” Brenda wrote. “What could be more appropriate?”
Brenda’s daughter, Beth Reaves, had the idea to compile a family cookbook, and many of the recipes were Mama Bill’s. In addition to her chicken and dumplings recipe, there’s her lemon pound cake, a pecan pie recipe she passed down to her daughters, and Mama Bill’s 15-Day Dill Pickles, which indeed take more than two weeks to prepare.
Brenda contributed a number of her family’s favorites, including chicken and dressing, carrot cake, and meatloaf. Her broccoli and cauliflower salad recipe, which includes a notation that “Tony Reaves is the best chopper in the world,” offers some insight into how the family eats so well all of the time. When it comes to cooking, they subscribe to “the more the merrier” philosophy rather than the idea that “too many cooks spoil the broth.”
“It’s kind of like divide and conquer,” said Beth, who along with her husband, Corey King, moved into the Reaves’ renovated basement last November. “Someone’s putting a salad together, someone else is chopping something, and in 30 minutes, you’ve got a meal.”
Brenda said teamwork is the key. “I wouldn’t cook like I do if they didn’t enjoy eating it and they didn’t pitch in,” she said. “We have some of our best times when we’re cooking. We put music on and make it fun.”
All in the family
Just as Brenda learned her secrets by being in the kitchen with her grandmother and mother, her children and grandchildren are pretty accomplished cooks, as well. “When she was cooking, I was in there talking to her and you just pick it up,” said Beth, who was preparing meals like roast and vegetables for the family by the time she was 10 or 12. Her son, Blake, now a college student, “was chopping onions and okra when he was 4,” Beth said.
The screened porch at the “Coosa Loosa Lodge”
The Reaves’ son, Bret, is a master griller, and he often can be found helping to man the Big Green Egg, the smoker, barbecue grill or flat-top grill, all of which get quite a workout. “We’ve got it all covered,” Tony said of their assortment of outdoor cookers. “On the Fourth of July, we did breakfast for 25 and cooked everything out here,” Brenda added.
Veggies are a big draw for the family, as well. “When my kids were growing up, their favorite food was broccoli,” Brenda said, adding that Blake and her granddaughter, 17-year-old Bella, love turnip greens and asparagus. She and Beth buy their produce from nearby farms and farmer’s markets and get plenty of extra for later.
“It takes a lot of time in the summer to put up the green beans and corn and strawberries, but in the winter it sure is nice to get those fresh veggies from the freezer, Beth said.
A slower pace
Although the family has always loved getting together, the gatherings have become even more fun since Brenda and Tony bought their lake home. “We wanted to have a place for our kids and grandkids to be,” said Brenda, who has wonderful memories of summer days at her parents’ lake cabin. “That’s where my love for the water came from.”
They bought the house in 2014 and spent about a year remodeling it, doing most of the work themselves. Since then, the house has undergone two additional renovations, including changes made a after a 2017 tornado.
The living room now has vaulted ceilings, the swimming pool has been filled in to make a spot for a fire pit and chairs, and a screened porch was added. The deck below is home to all the outdoor cookers, and a wooden walkway connects it to the top deck of the boat house. “We built a bridge so we can get our wheelchairs out there,” Brenda joked.
Some of that work, and the most recent kitchen renovation, was completed after a tree fell through the middle of the house on New Year’s Eve 2019. Beth and Corey were sitting at the table working a puzzle when they heard a loud noise. “We thought someone was just getting an early start with the fireworks,” Beth recalled.
Not ones to let a little thing like a fallen tree and heavily damaged home get in the way of some good food, they took time to eat the New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp that was cooking at the time. “We took it out of the oven and ate it in the carport,” Beth said. “We’re not going to miss a meal,” Tony added with a laugh.
They did miss a few, though, in the more than 20 years that Brenda and Tony operated the Anniston Memorial Funeral Home and Anniston Memorial Gardens before retiring in 2018. The hours were crazy and there was no such thing as a day off. “Even during Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner, usually someone would have to leave to go to work,” Tony said.
That’s why they cherish family time even more. “We have enjoyed so much being able to live a slower life,” Brenda said. “This is a life I never could have imagined. If I could have dreamed it, I could not have dreamed it better.”
Mama Bill’s Chicken and Dumplin’s
1 whole chicken or chicken parts
2 tsp. salt
1 stick butter
Dumplins:
3 cups Bisquick
1 can cream of chicken soup
Flour
Cook chicken in enough water to cover and salt. Remove the chicken and add the stick of butter to the broth.
Prepare 3 cups of Bisquick, mixing as directed. Roll flat, to about ¼ inch, on well-floured surface. Use a floured knife to cut dough into 2-inch squares. Roll each piece of dough in a small amount of flour.
Drop squares into boiling broth and push it down into the broth. After dropping all dough, reduce heat and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes and then stir in soup. Cook 10 more minutes and add the chicken pulled from the bone.
*Although Mama Bill used homemade biscuit dough, the taste is very similar.
Carrot Cake
2 cups plain or cake flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking soda
2 cups sugar
½ cup chopped nuts
3 cups carrots, grated
1 cup Wesson oil
4 eggs
Frosting:
1 box confectioner’s sugar
1 stick margarine
2 tsp. vanilla
1 8-ounce cream cheese, softened
½ cup chopped nuts
Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda and sugar together three times. Put Wesson oil and eggs in mixer; beat until fluffy. Add grated carrots, then blend in dry ingredients; add nuts.
Pour batter into three 9-inch pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Frosting: Combine sugar, cream cheese and margarine. Add vanilla and nuts. Frost each layer completely.
When innovative indoor climbing “microgym” GadRock made its debut in 2018, The City of Champions added another trophy to its display case. Located on Rainbow Drive overlooking serene Lake Gadsden, adventure awaits all seeking to explore something new in Etowah County, with GadRock proving the perfect escape on the water.
GadRock co-owners and friends Carrie Machen and Kate Wilson coined the term “microgym” as a nod to their past. The pair initially sparked a friendship while working at local microbrewery Back Forty Beer Company in downtown Gadsden, where a meager chat prompted the duo to dive into a massive venture. Both avid outdoorswomen and fitness enthusiasts, Machen and Wilson juggled the idea of a space where rock climbers – such as Machen’s son – could train indoors. Wilson’s solution was a concept already brewing in Machen’s mind: a gym.
She first familiarized herself with indoor rock-climbing facilities at YoungLife Camp Windy Gap neighboring Asheville, N.C. While she was an efficient recreational outdoor rock climber, the immersive world of artificial rope walls and bouldering areas intrigued Machen. Her family had joined gyms across the country, as they traveled from state to state with her husband’s military career. Drawing from these previous experiences, she and Wilson began the extensive search for the perfect location for GadRock, settling on a vacant lot at 1403 Rainbow Drive, which was full of potential.
Massachusetts-centered design company, Rockwerx, Inc., Chase Building Group and CDP Design, LLC conjured GadRock’s concept into a tangible footprint, constructing 4,500 square feet of climbing space. Courses vary in difficulty between both the rope climbing area and bouldering area, with one of the gym’s feature walls towering 40 feet high. Unobstructed, captivating views of the lake dazzle climbers, who peer down at the glistening water via garage-style doors that lift when the weather permits.
GadRock offers options for climbers of all levels of expertise and comfort. The microgym’s welcoming staff eliminates the intimidation that sometimes hinders new visitors, demonstrating necessary rope skills and the correct way to climb and belay during classes. Guests can choose from lead climbing or top roping. They are common forms of indoor climbing that incorporate harnesses and rope anchored from above and belayed from the ground, or bouldering, which features no harness or rope, just a crash pad to catch any who fall. Bouldering climbers seldom ascend higher than 20 feet as they deduce solutions to the “problems” appearing in boulder routes to reach their destinations.
On land and water
While GadRock nurtures the climbing community that circulates throughout Etowah County, its prime accessibility to Lake Gadsden unlocks another realm of opportunity for visitors to enjoy: paddleboarding. Machen and Wilson began paddling classes before climbing ever became available at GadRock, both earning their coaching certification the summer they started construction of the microgym.
Though some gym-goers flock to GadRock for just climbing or only paddling, gym members have access to both sports. The gym provides everything climbers or paddlers need concerning equipment, from harnesses and chalk to boards.
“Paddleboarding is another sense of community out there on the water,” said Machen. “It’s very peaceful out there on Lake Gadsden, with lots of wildlife that is fun to see. During the summer, a lot of people will come in here for a climbing session because it’s cool inside, then get out on the water and paddle and swim.”
Five classes cater to paddleboarders of all stages: SUP Intro Tour, SUP Fitness Tour, SUP Eco Tour, SUP Yoga Tour or a SUP & SIP Tour. Designed for beginners, the Intro Tour reigns true to its name, introducing beginners to the basics of paddleboarding. Machen shared that by the end of the Intro Tour, most people are standing up and paddling without a hitch.
A history of Lake Gadsden alongside the Coosa River, native wildlife spotting and exploration of the area characterize the Eco Tour, with the Yoga Tour emerging as a peaceful relaxation time on the water. Wilson leads the Fitness Tour, which incorporates a HIIT-style workout with aggressive paddling for 45 minutes to an hour of efficient exercise.
The SUP & SIP Tour, which Machen describes as the most popular and leisurely tour, is pure fun. A group gathers to explore tributary creeks, circling back to GadRock’s dock to enjoy a drink while watching the sunset.
“Stand-up paddling for this area is very new. So is indoor climbing,” said Machen. “With GadRock, we were introducing these new sports to people. I believe people might see our guests paddling and think that it looks hard and intimidating, but it absolutely isn’t – same with climbing. If you look at how tall the walls are, that might look overwhelming for some people. We try to take that intimidation factor out by having clinics and classes for paddling.”
Machen noted that in both climbing and paddling, GadRock transforms exercise from traditional techniques people sometimes dread, into unique, fun and interactive activities that generate excitement. Complimentary cross-training sports, both paddling and climbing are full-body workouts, using the same muscles.
After tearing her ACL climbing, paddling became a form of rehabilitation for Machen, aiding in her regaining her strength. Machen shared that not only does paddling and climbing minister to an individual’s physical wellness, but both contribute to improving one’s mental health.
“I love to get out on the water,” said Machen, who gains her greatest ideas while paddling by herself (or with her dog, who she often takes with her). “Sometimes, I’ll just stop and listen to the sounds around me and just let my mind drift and think. I’m more reflective when I’m out on the water.”
While paddling proves restorative and contemplative, climbing exercises a person’s mind in an alternate way. Machen noted that climbing is full of mistakes, but the sport teaches that to fail does not make a person a failure – it just gives him or her another opportunity to stand up and try again.
“When I’m climbing, I’m thinking about the next move, or what I’m doing right then in the moment, how to accomplish my goals on the wall,” said Machen. “I like that, because you’re not thinking about everything else in your life or in the world. You can take some time climbing and reflect on the present.”
Machen furthered paddling’s link to climbing, emphasizing that the Coosa River runs through all her favorite outdoor spots. From Southeastern Climbers Coalition’s Hospital Boulders on Lookout Mountain to Chandler Mountain’s Horse Pens 40, to Cherokee Rock Village and Moss Rock Preserve, a stone’s throw in Hoover, Etowah County and surrounding communities provide residents with countless remarkable chances for adventure. As climbing generates a deeper sense of understanding concerning nature, paddling parallels that appreciation, with Machen and other paddlers involved in efforts to protect the natural resources at their fingertips.
“The paddling and climbing communities are amazing,” said Machen. “They’re the people who are out there on the rocks and on the water. If you’re never on the water, you may never appreciate it as much as someone who is using it. We (these communities) are the people most invested in protecting those assets, concerned with water quality and access points. Even if you never get out on the water, if you just sit beside the lake and see the visual beauty … we should all look around and appreciate what (these resources) bring to our community.” As a child growing up in Gadsden, Machen often trekked through the little wooded areas of Clubview, excavating the pliable earth in creek beds and overturning rocks to uncover arrowheads. While Machen surmised that she probably found them all, cradling those arrowheads in her palms, her ears filled with the tranquil burble of water foreshadowed a future intwined with conservation and community.
Ten years after buying their dream house on Logan Martin Lake, Deborah Mattison and her husband, Ronnie Harkins, created an outdoor oasis that made their own piece of paradise even dreamier.
After removing the concrete slab that was their patio, the couple created a backyard haven, complete with a cozy fireplace, covered sitting and dining areas, and an outdoor kitchen that rivals many of its indoor counterparts.
Ronnie places salmon on cedar plank
“It’s like having another living space, and it’s opened up so many possibilities,” Deborah said. “This makes it so much easier to entertain.”
Like many home-renovation projects, the outdoor living area started with a small idea that took on a life of its own. “I wanted an outdoor fireplace, and it grew from there,” Ronnie said. Four years later, he and Deborah are thrilled that it did.
“I have a stressful job,” said Deborah, an attorney who represents children with disabilities in special education matters. “When I get home from work, we come out here more nights than not and just look at the lake and relax. Being on the lake is really calming.”
Dining al fresco
Although Deborah is the chief cook, Ronnie said he handles the grilling. These days, they eat a lot of fish and chicken, so both the Coyote Grill and Big Green Egg get quite a workout. The outdoor kitchen also features two burners, an infrared cooker, a mini fridge, sink and lots of storage space.
One of their favorite recipes is Cedar Plank Salmon. “For some reason, cooking salmon on a plank makes the fish incredibly tender,” Deborah said, adding that they always keep cedar planks on hand.
She often pairs the salmon with Whole Artichokes with Aioli Sauce. “Artichokes are a unique vegetable with many health benefits,” she said. “They’re low in fat and high in fiber, minerals and vitamins C and K. Most people only eat them in dips, but they are delicious whole.”
They were also part of the very first meal she made for Ronnie when they were dating. “I made him crab cakes and an artichoke. I hoped the artichoke would make me look sophisticated,” she said with a laugh.
The couple met on a dating website and got married in 2002. “He was the first person I ever met online,” she said. She was intrigued that Ronnie, who had long served as chief financial officer for Central Alabama Community College, had started law school one month shy of his 50th birthday.
That, coupled with the fact that his profile picture showed him in front of a floor-to-ceiling bookcase that held many photos of his family, sealed the deal for Deborah. “I thought Ronnie looked smart and interesting,” she said.
Ronnie, who began practicing law in Sylacauga in 2005 before retiring two years ago, remembers being fascinated by her work and some of her cases. “Early on, she had a case that went to the United States Supreme Court,” he said. “I tagged along with her, and with me attending law school, that was very interesting.”
A piece of paradise
Deborah and Ronnie
Deborah, who grew up in Michigan, lived on a lake before moving to Alabama in 1993. She didn’t want to give up the lake lifestyle, so she looked for a home on the water that wasn’t too far from her office in downtown Birmingham.
Her first home was on the Talladega side of the lake, and when they married, Ronnie sold his home in Childersburg and soon fell in love with lake living as well. They began looking for a new house and spent a lot of time on the pontoon boat searching for the perfect place and debating whether to renovate Deborah’s home, buy a new house or build. “We used to ride around all the time looking at houses and lots,” Ronnie said. “This was our dream home.”
Around that time, Ronnie’s cousin, Charlie Pepper, and his wife, Willie, moved home from California to help care for their elderly parents. They invited Ronnie and Deborah to dinner, and the couple did a double take when they arrived. “They had our house,” Deborah said.
Ronnie said the visit came at a time when they had gotten serious about finding a new home and had actually looked at six or eight houses that day. “When we got here that night to see Charlie and Willie, it emphasized our love of the house,” he said. “It has lots of windows and 14-foot ceilings in several of the rooms and an open plan.”
The Peppers knew they would eventually return to California, and “they told us they would give us the first opportunity to buy it,” Ronnie said. “We decided it was worth the wait.”
The ‘inside’ kitchen
The 4-bedroom house in Pell City is just across from Bird Island and sits on 4½ acres on the point. It boasts 800 feet of seawall and has tremendous views from every vantage point. “You can see the water from every room in the house,” Deborah said.
Making it their own
Over the years, Deborah and Ronnie have renovated parts of the home to make it a better space for entertaining. They updated the kitchen and master bathroom and transformed an office just off the foyer into a small sitting room where they spend most of their time when they’re inside.
They converted a double closet to create the room’s focal point, a beautiful bar area featuring an antique chest flanked with built-in wine racks and topped with granite. An antique mirror and shelves holding glasses and bottles rests on top. In addition, they switched their living room and dining room to create more space for a larger table, which seats 10 people.
Although they like having guests, Deborah also enjoys preparing meals for just the two of them. “I love to cook,” she said. “While I often use recipes for ideas, I typically don’t measure anything, I eyeball it – unless I’m baking, which I very seldom do. I measure then because I don’t have enough of a feel for baking to use my own judgement.”
Their bar is as fancy as their kitchen.
One thing she swears by is using fresh herbs, which she grows herself. “I grow a ton of herbs – mint, chives, rosemary, oregano, thyme,” she said. “Alabama has such a great growing season, and since these are perennial herbs, you don’t have to do anything but stick them in the pot and let them grow year-round.”
Now that Ronnie has retired, they have started gardening, too. He built some raised beds last year for tomatoes, radishes, onions, summer squash and bell peppers. They also have eight blueberry bushes. “I eat them just about every day when they are in season,” Ronnie said.
The great outdoors
The addition of the kitchen and living area has extended the “outdoor season” for Deborah and Ronnie, allowing them to enjoy lake life even more. They often host football parties and dinners for family and friends, and they find themselves heading outside even during the colder months.
“We love the fireplace at night,” Deborah said, adding that it’s especially cozy when there’s a nip in the air. “I put blankets in the dryer to warm them up, and then we sit in front of the fire for quite a while. It’s like being on vacation.”
Cedar Plank Salmon
Serves 2.
Ingredients:
2 salmon filets
1/8 cup Garlic Expressions Vinaigrette, Dressing & Marinade (or any preferred vinaigrette dressing)
1/8 cup soy sauce (optional)
Lemon slices
Capers (optional)
1 cedar plank board, soaked in water for about an hour.
Directions:
Marinate the filets for about an hour in the Garlic Expressions and soy sauce. I use a plastic sandwich bag and turn it over after 30 minutes.
Drain the cedar board and place the board on a grill set at 350 degrees for 3 minutes. Turn the plank over on the grill and place the salmon on it. Cook the salmon for 8 to 15 minutes, depending on how well cooked you like your salmon.
Remove the plank from the grill and plate the salmon. Garnish with lemon and capers. We sometimes add butter and/or marinated ginger.
Whole Artichokes with Aioli Sauce
While we like our artichokes with an aioli sauce, they pair well with many dips, such as a butter and lemon sauce or ranch dressing.
Ingredients:
1 artichoke per person
Lemon (optional)
Garlic (optional)
Bay leaf (optional)
Directions for Cooking and Eating:
When picking an artichoke, squeeze it to make sure it is firm, and the leaves are tight.
Trim the stem and cut off the small leaves at the bottom of the artichoke. Trim the first inch off the top (the pointy ends of the leaves).
Steam the artichoke for about 30 minutes. You can also add lemon and/or garlic and/or a bay leaf to the water for added taste. An artichoke is done when you can easily pull out one of the outer leaves. Drain the artichoke.
To eat the artichoke, pull off an outer leaf and dip it into the aioli sauce. Place the tender (lighter) side of a leaf on your bottom front teeth, bite gently down and pull it through your teeth, scrapping off the tender part of the leaf. Discard the remainder of the leaf.
Continue with the remaining leaves until you reach the fuzzy part of the artichoke, called the “choke.” Scrape out the fuzzy choke and discard. The remaining part is the artichoke “heart,” and it is completely edible, using the reminder of the dip.
Aioli Sauce
This is a very versatile sauce and can be used with fries, burgers or salmon. Consider adding any of the following: horseradish, Dijon or stone-ground mustard, pesto or basil, chives and/or chipotle.
Ingredients:
½ cup of mayonnaise
3 cloves of garlic, use more or less to taste
1-2 tablespoons of fresh lemon sauce, to taste
Coarse salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Mix the ingredients and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Enjoy!
While in 2022 Little Bridge’s eye-catching arches coincide with a beloved Etowah County restaurant and marina, 82 years ago Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge first served as a gateway between sister cities – sparking a unified narrative its presence nurtures today.
June 17, 1939, signified the official opening of a bridge that would bear many names in its lifetime. The late 1930s referred to the passage as Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge, a structure 864 feet in length supported with a trio of concrete piers and foundations resting on solid rock. Former Southside Mayor Jane Keenum remembered the bridge’s opening in 1939, sharing her experience in a Gadsden Times article celebrating the city’s 40th anniversary. Keenum noted that the bridge was designed to turn to allow boats to pass through.
The bridge earned its original namesake from the surge of transportation in Southside that flourished on the Coosa River in ferries. Though Gilbert’s Ferry was the largest, Lister Ferry boated routes to Rainbow City, and Fowler Ferry traveled from Pilgrims Rest to Whorton Bend – all communities the bridge continues to serve years after its construction.
“These old ferries brought out a lazy feeling around summer, when one would doze off in the early afternoon holding a fishing pole,” said Etowah County historian Danny Crownover, detailing how the operations influenced life on the Coosa. “It was living just like Huckleberry Finn!”
In a 2013 article for The Messenger, Crownover referenced 1963 Assistant County Engineer Paul Ryan’s perception of the Coosa’s ferries, which he coined as the “only means of transportation for people who live near the banks of the river.” The ferries proved vital for Southside and Rainbow City residents, saving them a 15 to 30-mile trip to either Gadsden or Leesburg to cross the Coosa River.
State Rep. Joe Ford demonstrates the narrowness of the bridge, which was too tight for two school buses to pass one another.
“In many instances, a family lives on one side of the river and works a crop on the other side,” said Ryan. “It would take them a long time to get to their fields if they had to drive it. By using a ferry, they can make the trip in a matter of minutes.”
Former Southside Mayor Eddie Hedgspeth told reporter Lisa Rodgers that his great-grandfather Mark H. Smith ran Gilbert’s Ferry for 30 years, during a time when buggies were charged 50 cents, wagons cost 25 cents, horseback riders were 10 cents and individuals could pay 5 cents to cross the river. When Smith sold the ferry to the county, rides became free.
Smith’s feet waded into the past and the future of river transportation. Though his ferry represented a way of life for Etowah County, he later donated land on both sides of the Coosa to build Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge, introducing a new age on the river for residents.
Fluctuation in water levels following Alabama Power Company’s development of the Coosa River and Etowah County’s blueprints for bridges (to take the place of ferries) phased out the memorable Mark Twain era. Some 20 years following the debut of Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge, an Alabama Power Company construction program erected the H. Neely Henry, Weiss, Logan Martin and Bouldin dams.
Little Bridge Marina owner Craig Inzer, Jr., recalled stories he heard of Etowah County residents who were instrumental in the transformation of the land beneath Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge. When Lawyer Rowan Bone and businessman Jay Troutman learned of the water level’s increase due to the dams during the 1960s, they decided to move their land into the future.
“They dug that farmland up and put dirt where the road is (now),” said Inzer. “They put boat slips in, so when the water came up, they had boat slips (and were prepared).”
Since its inception, Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge played a pivotal role in the relationship between two mirroring municipalities in Etowah County, connecting Rainbow City and Southside. The year 1850 witnessed the small agricultural merger of Pilgrims Rest, Cedar Bend and Green Valley, giving birth to Southside. The “loveliest village on the Coosa,” settles at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, resting along the banks of the river.
Green Valley proved the catalyst for the city’s industry with its grist, blacksmith and sorghum mill, while Brannon Springs and Alabama 77 operated a cotton gin. Like its bridge, the community hopped from name to name until Southside stuck in the 1920s and became incorporated in 1957.
The bridge today
Rainbow City’s rolling green hills were home to one of the earliest settlements in Etowah County with families from Georgia and North and South Carolina migrating to Alabama to put down roots in the early 1800s. According to the city’s history, Hernando DeSoto’s troops first visited the area in 1540. Where the Pensacola Trading Path crossed the Coosa, a bridge now stands. Incorporated in 1950, Rainbow City houses numerous thriving businesses alongside Southside, with its current mayors and administration working hand in hand to foster prosperity for its citizens.
The narrow Gilbert’s Ferry Bridge, now referred to as the Southside Bridge or lovingly called Little Bridge, once welcomed traffic to and from Southside. Its cramped two-lane space proved too constricting for vehicles, with photographs highlighting how local school buses barely scraped past one another.
During the late 1970s, Southside secured a $7-million bond project and constructed a new bridge to serve as the southbound lane between cities. This bridge is now a two-lane entrance and exit to the city.
Today, Little Bridge remains solely a northbound lane on Alabama 77 with residents driving over generations of history – traveling to and from prominent communities, illustrating the unified spirit of Etowah County each time they pass underneath its arches.
Editor’s Note:Gadsden Public Library staff Craig Scott, Kevin Graves and Debbie Walker contributed to this article, along with Craig Inzer, Jr., and Danny Crownover, City of Rainbow City and the City of Southside.
Story by Eryn Ellard Photos by Meghan Frondorf and Mackenzie Free
Entertainment took top billing with featured bands,
Confederate Railroad, $till Broke and Sweet Tea Trio
What began the day as a fall festival turned into an unforgettable concert by evening, entertaining crowds throughout despite an uncooperative Mother Nature at times.
It was Greensport Marina’s inaugural Rocking the Banks of Greensport music festival, debuting Oct. 30, and it did not disappoint for those who turned out. Headlined by Confederate Railroad, Sweet Tea Trio and $tillbroke bands, it was an ideal venue for a memorable evening, even with colder weather and periods of rain coming in.
Music, lights, plenty of food and beverages and a lakeside view, it had all the makings of a destination point that should see crowds return and grow, especially since organizers are planning to move it to a warmer weather month.
The place
Nestled in the rolling hills of Ashville along the banks of Neely Henry Lake lies Greensport Marina, a sprawling family-owned venue that draws in tourists and regulars alike. Greensport is now home to almost 100 RV spaces with hookups and high-speed internet access.
Owner and marketing specialist Stephanie Evans said the marina is at 90% capacity during peak season weekdays and 100% for peak season weekends. It features an in-ground pool, beach area and large pavilion used for events and weddings.
When she and her husband began running the marina in 2020, she wanted to upgrade amenities, such as the pool and pavilion addition, that would be home to a secure and safe family-friendly environment.
Making it happen
Planning for Rocking the Banks of Greensport began in early July with securing the musical talent. “We wanted a lot of energy and excitement,” Evans said. Longtime musician and family friend, Johnny Adams, with the popular band, $tillbroke, helped to secure contracts for the bands and equipment.
After the bands were secured, it was nonstop planning for the event. “Every day was consumed by preparing, advertising and planning from that point forward along with the marina’s normal business operations,” Evans said. Local radio stations along with social media helped get the word out about the concert and fall festival. There was a costume contest, and over 50 vendors were in attendance – peddling everything from crafts, one-of-a-kind gifts, and of course, food trucks were in abundance.
The weather on Halloween weekend turned out to be less than kind, but Confederate Railroad, $tillbroke and Sweet Tea Trio still rocked for the crowds that came out to enjoy the concert.
“Despite the extreme cold and rain, we still had a large number of people to show up and enjoy,” Evans said. “It also gave us the opportunity to see what worked great and areas we need to improve on with a large number of attendees.” Evans noted that those in attendance thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment.
Room to grow
Also located on-site is a large open field that is gently sloped, easily setting up as a beautiful, natural amphitheater. Evans noted that space could hold 10,000 people comfortably. “Our ultimate goal is to provide a beautiful venue with high-end performers, and to attract people to come within a three-hour radius of the marina. “We want every event, large or small, to be enjoyable so that everyone will want to return for the next.”
There are plans to hold the second annual Rocking the Banks of Greensport in June of 2022 rather than in the fall. One of their ultimate goals is to one day have Kid Rock perform.
St. Clair County Tourism Coordinator Blair Goodgame said events like Rocking the Banks are a crucial part of local tourism in the area and are vital to improving the quality of life in St. Clair County. “Events like these bring new people to the area, and we know once they visit, they will want to come back again and again,” Goodgame said.
Looking forward to 2022, Goodgame said she can’t wait for the June concert at Greensport. “With the summer heat and kids out of school, even more people will be looking to road trip to places like Greensport.” Goodgame also noted that there are also so many other things to do at Greensport, such as kayaking, picnicking, sampling local cuisine, among other things. “That’s the beauty of St. Clair – you always get more than you expect here.”
Story and photos by Graham Hadley Additional photos courtesy of Charles Ard
Most people looking for a new boat to take out on the Coosa buy one from dealers along the lakes.
Pell City’s Charlie Ard, on the other hand, simply builds one from scratch – sometimes in as little as four days.
Moored to the dock at his girlfriend’s house is one such shining example: A 24-foot, center-console mahogany boat that is truly a work of art named the Corabell. And not only is she a thing of beauty, but the all-wood boat is fast, too, powered by a big inboard V8 engine.
“I built her from the ground up in 2009, starting with just a pile of lumber,” he said.
“I built my first boat when I was 12. It was based on a boat in the Pogo comic strips. I had always admired that little boat. Now this was my 10th boat built since then.”
Charlie’s father was an engineer, and he grew up around his father’s shop, so taking on the complicated process of building wood boats was almost second nature to him. Originally, Charlie’s wood shop was in Birmingham, but the retired HVAC technician moved the entire operation to his shop attached to his house in Cropwell years ago. Like his boats, Charlie designed and built both his house and shop – and much of the furnishings, tables and storage cabinets there as well.
Charlie explaining his hull build
The Corabell’s distinctive mahogany build gives the boat that classic antique look, but Charlie chose that wood for more than its looks.
“Mahogany is durable, as durable as fiberglass,” he said. “And it does not take much maintenance. The urethane I use is good. The Corabell has had one coat in the past 12 years. … The mahogany is actually lighter than fiberglass and does not soak up water like other woods.”
He is quick to point out the mahogany he uses is plantation grown, so his boats don’t contribute to over logging or damage the environment.
Charlie credits not only his father, who was also an amateur woodcarver, with inspiring him, but also a host of other people in his life. “I learned a lot from the woodcarvers guild. I am actually the past president of the Alabama Woodworkers Guild.”
Add to that training natural inborn talent for his craft (lots of natural talent), and the end result is a boat builder who can create remarkable and unique watercraft and do it in a surprisingly short period of time.
Boat hulls are complicated creations – because all of the curves and structural strength needed to make a seaworthy vessel, the individual strips of wood are almost abstract creations. The flat piece of wood bears little resemblance to the way it looks on the completed boat.
Charlie says he uses standard measurements for his hull designs, but there is still a large portion of the design that is all his.
Working from a large drafting table outfitted with a rare left-handed drafting machine, Charlie (who claims lefties are more creative) draws out full-size blueprints for his boats. He then takes those designs to his workshop, where he lays them out on a table and builds the boat over them, projecting right from his original drawings.
Despite the complexity and the attention to detail – there are more than 4,000 screws holding the hull of the Corabell together – Charlie builds his works of art in record time.
“The Corabell only took a few months to build,” he said. His shortest time for a build is four days – a beautiful rowboat he put together between Christmas and New Years shortly after his father passed away in 2008.
That rowboat sits in his boat shed on his Cropwell property, complete with the oars he made especially for it.
“I built this in honor of my Daddy. Dad rowed recreationally. I think he did that to irritate me. I like big V8s, but he said, ‘I don’t need a motor, I will just row.’”
Like most of his builds, the rowboat is mahogany, and Charlie said it is the perfect boat for some of the lakes in the national forest where motors are not allowed.
Charlie also honored his father with some of the design elements on the Corabell.
The rowboat and oars Charlie built in memory of his father
“My father made dulcimers – like the Appalachian musical instrument, so I made a finial based on that design on the bow,” he said.
Though the Corabell is not his biggest build – there is a 30-foot twin screw that he put together but no longer owns that is used as a fishing boat in the Gulf Stream out of Bimini – she is one of his favorites.
“She has turned out to be a good boat, no vices, an all-around successful project,” he said.
From bow to stern, the Corabell is full of custom designs, and Charlie’s attention to detail is evident in every piece of work. The top is even made out of canvas stretched over laminated wood bracings.
One of the most impressive features is the center console, which folds forward to expose the engine. The boat has a modified V-shaped hull, with a “good bit of keel,” and between the hull design and the engine, the Corabell will flat-out go.
“This boat will do 40 mph. I have never skied behind it – my only motorboat I have not done that on,” he said. Even though the boat is all wood, it only weighs about as much as a Ski Natique.
Charlie drafts full-size blueprints and then bulds the boat hull right over the drawings. This is his
rowboat he built in four days.
Despite its speed, Charlie prefers to cruise around Logan Martin Lake at a more leisurely pace.
“I like to get up, get my morning coffee, and cruise around the lake at about 10 mph,” he said.
The Corabell is moored to a dock at Charlie’s girlfriend’s house. He built the dock with her blessing – and a covered area for her boat, so he would have a place to tie up on Logan Martin.
Parked up on a trailer on the same property is another Charlie Ard creation – the flat-bottomed boat, Cooney Bonet.
His boat names all have special personal meaning – the Corabell is named after a favorite teacher who made a huge difference in her students’ lives, “mine included” – and the Cooney Bonet is no exception.
“He waded ashore at Omaha Beach in World War II. He was a great American,” Charlie said.
The 16-foot, again mahogany, flat-bottom boat was built for getting around all parts of the lake.
“It will float in 3 inches of water, and with the motor up, you can pole it along. It was not intended for speed, just kvetching about, to have fun in,” he said. While speed was not the original intent, “I designed it for a 10-horsepower motor. Then I got this 18-horsepower motor. This thing will fly.”
Charlie’s love of the water is apparent. The walls of his shop are lined with charts of coastal regions, lakes and rivers, fishing gear and other memorabilia. Equally apparent is his love of woodworking. If you look among the decorations, you can find an award he received for one of his work benches and cabinets he designed and built.
Like so many of Charlie Ard’s creations, it is both functional and a work of art. It sits among his other hand-made cabinets and benches in his shop awaiting his next project.
Fish habitats, marine patrol, increased depth, Renew Our Rivers, educational programs for school kids, Water Wars with Georgia — phew! The Neely Henry Lake Association is involved in a lot of programs to preserve, protect and improve the quality of life in and around Neely Henry Lake.
“Quality of life, the environment and safety are our chief concerns,” says NHLA president Dave Tumlin. “But we like to have fun, too.”
Some of that fun comes from their annual two-night Christmas Boat Parade, which began in 2018 and skipped last year due to COVID concerns. It will be back full throttle Dec. 3 and Dec. 4.
Friday, Dec. 3, the parade will be held in Gadsden along the Coosa Landing marina area. Sunday, Dec. 5, it will be held in the Rainbow City/Southside area, between Rainbow Landing and the Southside Marina. Details (contact person, start times, parade maps, etc.) for both parades will be posted on the NHLA website (neelyhenrylakeassociation.com) and Facebook page.
The Great Alabama 650, a 650-mile paddle race across Alabama that passed through the Coosa River again in September, is another fun time for lake residents and more. Billed as “the world’s longest annual paddle race,” it starts in Northeast Alabama and ends at Fort Morgan in Mobile Bay.
The NHLA was formed in the mid-90s with 15-20 members, but gradually grew larger and was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1999. Today, it boasts more than 250 members. “We were formed for two reasons,” Tumlin says of the NHLA. “The first was a safety issue. We wanted Alabama Power to cut trees along the eastern side of the river because they were rotting and falling into the lake, and boaters couldn’t see them. APC responded and had the trees removed.
Also, APC was dropping the lake three to five feet every winter to prevent flooding in the Gadsden area. The flooding was caused by heavy rainfall and a narrow section below Gadsden known as Minnesota Bend that restricted flow.
In 1999, the NHLA petitioned Alabama Power, the Corps of Engineers and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to establish a fall and winter elevation of 507 feet above sea level on the lake. This is two feet higher than the 505-foot elevations previously allowed. After a number of meetings with the various entities involved, the request was approved in 2001. That improved boating safety and access to the lake and significantly increased property values and recreation/tourism, according to an informational brochure published by the NHLA.
Alabama Power started the dam-building project that created Neely Henry and Logan Martin lakes in 1966, the same year Tumlin’s father began building his lake house. The elder Tumlin had purchased a 160-acre farm with 1.5 miles of frontage on the Coosa in 1962, sight unseen.
Completed in the spring of 1968, his house was one of the first ones built along that waterfront. “You used to see pastures on the banks of the Coosa,” Tumlin says. His dad sold off lots through the years, and The Farm, as his family calls it, is down to 30 acres, including a small cemetery that has become the burial grounds for the Tumlin family.
“I bought out my siblings’ shares after dad died in 2014,” Tumlin says. “I just sold a lot to a couple from Georgia, who chose Neely Henry after much research because of the lake’s quality of life and stability of water level.”
He says the NHLA focuses on sharing information for the people on the lake by having monthly meetings, addressing concerns such as the fish population. “We got the State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to come to a meeting and talk about the fish population, which they say is good and stable,” Tumlin says. “It’s full of crappie and bass.”
Man-made fish habitats
Representatives of APC have attended association meetings to talk about aquatic weeds and their control and shoreline management regulations. Alabama Power controls permits for structures or other changes along the shoreline, such as boathouse size and location and the building of seawalls. “You have to go through APC to get a permit for any shoreline changes,” Tumlin explains.
Other speakers have talked about the Native Americans who used to live along the Coosa and the artifacts people find along its shores. They also hosted the Alabama Marine Patrolspeaking on boating safety and regulations. It’s all about providing informational resources to lake residents and businesses.
The association is a key participant in Renew Our Rivers, a regional cleanup project that began on Neely Henry in 2000 and now covers most of the rivers in Alabama. It has spread also to Georgia, Mississippi and Florida.
“That program was started as Renew the Coosa here in Gadsden by Gene Phifer, a Southern Company-Alabama Power employee, who is also a former president of the association and is still on our board of directors,” Tumlin says. “Volunteers will choose a part of the river or lake and spend a day picking up trash, most of it in the form of litter that starts in a city or community and eventually washes into our lakes and rivers.”
Churches, civic organizations, even prisoners participate in the program, which has resulted in 14 million pounds of debris removed from all participating areas through the years.
Two educational components to NHLA activities include the Message in the Bottle, which is part of the Renew Our Rivers program, and the Water Festival held each year at Gadsden State Community College.
Message in the Bottle was named after a 19-year-old “message” found in a plastic bottle during the 2001 Renew Our Rivers event. It involves schools in Etowah County, and more than 10,000 students have participated.
The Water Festival highlights the importance of clean water and the detrimental impacts of pollution. The festival provides a learning experience that utilizes instructor-led, basic laboratory demonstrations and subsequent discussions for fourth-grade students in Etowah County.
“Every four or five years, we coordinate with APC to approve a scheduled maintenance drawdown of the lake,” Tumlin says. “They drop it low, and people know about it ahead of time, so they get their boats out and line up contractors to repair piers and seawalls. The last one was about four years ago, and we hope to have another drawdown scheduled within the next year.”
Tumlin underscored the importance of the drawdown in maintaining structures along the lake. He was in his boat when the last drawdown took place. He looked back at his boathouse and noticed one of his pier pilings was rotted. “I got a piece of wooden pilingthat had floated down and washed ashore and made the repair,” he says.
Projects for preserving, protecting
The association has placed fishing-line receptacles near boat-launch areas on the Neely Henry in Calhoun, St. Clair and Etowah counties for collecting and recycling used fishing lines. “These lines are hazardous to many species of birds and aquatic and semi-aquatic organisms, as well as boat propellers and motors,” the NHLA brochure states.
Since 2005, members of the NHLA have worked with Alabama Power personnel to place hundreds of Christmas trees at various locations in Neely Henry to serve as fish habitats. The trees are secured to the bottom of the lake with concrete weights. Floats are attached to the tops of the trees so they will remain upright, and they are placed in deep water to prevent a safety hazard to boaters, swimmers and skiers.
An ongoing project has been facilitating the discussions about the 30-year-old “Water Wars” between Alabama and Georgia. “The NHLA is working with Alabama state agencies, local, state and national political leaders, other lake associations, environmental and angling associations, civic organizations and concerned citizen groups in an attempt to prevent future major water losses to Alabama,” according to NHLA literature.
The crux of the Water Wars is that Georgia continues to request and obtain more and more water from the Alabama, Coosa, Tallapoosa (ACT) Basin and the Apalachicola, Chattahoochee, Flint (AFC) Basin. The NHLA is concerned that Georgia has plans to take even more water than the amounts they are currently taking, which could have an immense environmental, economic and recreational impact on Alabama.
“Georgia continues to request (from the Corps of Engineers) and obtain more water from the Etowah River, which reduces water flow to the Coosa,” an NHLA white paper states. Much of the battle has been fought in court, but Alabama has come out on the losing end of these court battles in part because it has no comprehensive water management program, according to Tumlin. “That’s something the association is pushing for,” he says.
Their newsletter on their website (neelyhenrylakeassociation.com) and Facebook page contains a Call to Action section that the association uses as an informational platform. “When someone brings up an issue, like the recent Corp of Engineers proposal that would lower Neely Henry more frequently and more significantly, we research it and may put out a Call to Action to make people aware of what’s happening,” Tumlin says. “This allows our membership and the public to get involved and communicate their opinions to elected representatives and/or the appropriate agencies.”
Another example of A Call to Action involves the animal rendering plant that is being proposed for Etowah County. “Things could happen, such as settling ponds overflowing and draining into creeks, then the lake,” says Tumlin. “Neely Henry is one of only a handful of lakes along the Coosa that does not have any fish-eating restrictions, and we want to keep it that way.”
Three years ago, Jacksonville State University, sponsored by the lake association and Greater Etowah Tourism, did an Economic Impact Study on the Coosa River that included all of Etowah County and parts of Calhoun and St. Clair counties. According to Tumlin, they found that the total economic activity in these areas comes to $570,663,000 per year. They found a direct impact of $12,000,000, but additional impact comes from home values, restaurants and other businesses.
Tumlin says there are very few open lots left along the lake and estimates that 95% of the people who live on its shores are full-time residents. “We care about this lake.”
In its heyday, Pine Harbor played central role in lake community
Story by Leigh Pritchett Photos courtesy of Sue Pat DuBose, Mr. and Mrs. Roy H. Holladay II, Chris Spivey, St. ClairNews-Aegis (1977), St. Clair Observer (1975)
Growing up in the 1940s and ’50s, Dr. Thomas Ingram Jr. walked through neighbors’ fields near the Coosa River, enjoying those pastures and woods for what they were.
In the 1960s, Thomas Casady and H.G. Fraim looked at the fields and saw potential … lots of it.
Casady envisioned a complex that would include an 18-hole golf course, hotel, restaurant, lounge, pro shop, marina, country club, swimming pools, tennis courts and a chapel.
Fraim, known as “Bookie,” saw a vibrant neighborhood springing up around the complex.
Both visions came to fruition.
Locals knew Casady’s complex as Pine Harbor Marina, Pine Harbor Country Club and, in its final years, Pine Harbor Golf & Racquet Club.
Not only did this golf course entertain celebrities, but it and the rest of the complex also bonded the neighborhood it produced.
“We just had our own wonderful world out here,” said Deanna Lawley. For 50 years, she has been a resident of Pine Harbor, the neighborhood Bookie envisioned.
Casady built his complex in 1964, according to a May 29, 1975, article in the St. Clair Observer, a weekly newspaper at the time.
Casady, a seasoned businessman and a veteran of the Army Air Corps, rising to brigadier general and serving as national CAP commander, put his knowledge and experience to work for his vision. He was president of ElCasa Enterprises Inc., director of Union State Bank in Pell City, vice president of V.J. Elmore Stores in Birmingham, and a founding member of Canterbury Methodist Church in Birmingham, according to Civil Air Patrol National Headquarters in Montgomery at the time of his death in 2010. He also was inducted into the CAP Hall of Honor and Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame.
Mrs. Lawley credited Fraim with the foresight to develop two residential communities nearby along Logan Martin Lake – Riviere Estates and Skyline.
Golf course
The golf course was the second phase of Casady’s development, said Jo Ann Winnette, Fraim’s sister.
Recollections of those interviewed indicated that the golf course was likely the facet with the most impact on the community. “Golf and grandchildren” brought Roy Dye and wife Joanne to the Pine Harbor neighborhood from Washington state. “When we found Pine Harbor, we said, ‘This is where we want to be,’” explained Dye, who served as treasurer during the golf course’s later years.
Aerial view of Pine Harbor restaurant, tennis court, golf course from Chris Spivey Jr. and Bob Spivey
Winnette, who lives in Riviere Estates, said part of the land on which the golf course was built was donated by her mother, Robbie Sue Fraim. Additional property was acquired from J.A. Masters, according to Winnette, and a 2002 worship service program from the campus’ outdoor, lakeside church, Chapel in the Pines.
Winnette said her brother had a real sense of what Casady’s Pine Harbor could be. He believed it could attract Birmingham people to the area to play golf, get away for the weekend and enjoy the lake. He promoted Pine Harbor, creating Riviere Estates from lots from their mother’s farmland.
During its peak, Pine Harbor’s golf membership exceeded 400, sources said.
The golf course “was a point in the community, a hub in this community for a long time,” said Chris Spivey, state amateur golf champ and national senior amateur champ, who has lived in Pine Harbor since 1974.
“Probably a lot of business got done on the golf course or in the clubhouse,” said Jud Alverson, president of the Pell City Council and former president of Pine Harbor Golf & Racquet Club.
The golf course and Pine Harbor complex were assets in recruiting industry to Pell City, noted Ron Helms, Pine Harbor resident and former president of the club. “It was a very good addition to the city.”
Having noted golf instructor Jimmy Ballard on staff did not hurt either. Ballard was nationally known for the very specific technique he taught.
“There were quite a few professional golfers who came there to take lessons from him,” said Reed Alexander, who served on the board of directors. J.C. Snead, Leonard Thompson, Curtis Strange, Fuzzy Zoeller and Jim Colbert were among the pro golfers who reportedly received instruction from Ballard at Pine Harbor.
Plus, touring pro Mac McLendon made Pine Harbor his home course while he was on the PGA Tour in the 1970s, Mrs. Lawley said.
Encounters with the famous were not uncommon.
Mrs. Lawley and husband Barnett played tennis doubles with Mr. and Mrs. Zoeller. Alverson and a group of guys shot impromptu rounds with pro golfer Boo Weekley. Blind golf champ Charley Boswell was a regular.
Long-time Pine Harbor resident Sylvia Martin said she got to meet former NBA star Charles Barkley there. Florida State University’s noted football coach Bobby Bowden and University of Alabama coaching legend, Paul “Bear” Bryant, played the course, too, said Roy H. Holladay II, who lives in Pine Harbor.
The golf course was an outlet for different ages and abilities.
Cole Giddens of Cropwell was able to fulfill his wish of golfing every day in retirement and even managed the course and clubhouse for a decade.
Alverson was playing at Pine Harbor before he was old enough to rent a golf cart. He was club champ as a teen.
Kim Wilcox of Moody was Pine Harbor’s golf pro and course manager in the 1990s, and her son, Will Wilcox, played the course as a youth. He went on to the PGA and Korn Ferry tours, according to Kim, who became executive director of Birmingham Golf Association and women’s golf coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Sue Pat DuBose’s son, Brent, played in amputee tournaments at the course. “We had people to come all the way from London, England, to those tournaments.”
Spivey (“Chris Jr.”) saw golf and Pine Harbor’s course transform her mother, “Chris Sr.”
This started in the late 1970s. Chris Sr. was completely uninterested in golf. Chris Jr. got her mother to caddy for her in a Mississippi tournament. Chris Jr. finished with a national ranking, and “Mom went absolutely bonkers over golf.”
Chris Sr. learned to play golf. After her husband, Bob, became president of Pine Harbor Golf & Racquet Club, Chris Sr. managed the golf course. Chris Jr. said the course did well in the 1980s under her mother’s care.
Until Chris Sr.’s death in 1986, Mr. and Mrs. Spivey ran the golf course seven days a week almost by themselves, said Chris Jr., who was the weekend cart person.
Leading up to Chris Sr.’s management, the course sat unused for a time because of an ownership change, according to Mrs. Lawley.
To get the golf course reopened, Pine Harbor residents did what Pine Harbor residents do when situations arise: they banded together and took action, said Chris Jr.
“Everybody got on their lawn mowers and went over there and cut the fairways and cut the greens. Mother redid every single one of the sand traps herself … before they put the sand in them. Ruined my grandfather’s tiller (in the process),” Chris Jr. said with a laugh.
Hotel, restaurant and marina
The hotel, restaurant and marina were part of the first phase of development, said Winnette. The marina also featured covered and dry storage.
The hotel and restaurant sat side by side. A lounge, pro shop and swimming pool finished out that portion of the complex.
Mrs. Lawley said actress Sally Field and her family stayed at the hotel in 1975 during filming of the movie, Stay Hungry, in Birmingham.
Barnett Lawley and Field’s husband played tennis together during that time, and the Lawleys’ son, Cannon, swam with Fields’ children in the Lawleys’ pool. The Lawleys entertained Field and her family in their home, and the two families became friends.
The marina when it opened
One particular day, news spread quickly around the neighborhood about Field’s degree of undress while sunbathing at one of Pine Harbor’s pool, the Lawleys said.
The restaurant’s formal dining area could accommodate about a hundred patrons, Mrs. Lawley continued. That was in addition to the downstairs and outdoor dining areas.
The restaurant’s large windows offered an unhindered view of the marina, brilliant sunsets, and sailboats and other vessels bobbing up and down in the multitude of slips.
Bear Bryant tried to dine at the restaurant one time but drew such a crowd that he could not eat his meal, said Winnette.
At Casady’s request during Bryant’s visit, Fraim very secretively took the coach and Mrs. Bryant for an evening boat ride on Logan Martin Lake. Winnette said Bryant sent her brother a letter, thanking him for the excursion.
Mrs. Lawley noted that Casady began developing the Pine Harbor complex before Logan Martin Dam went into operation, which created Logan Martin Lake.
“(He) set piers (for the marina) before there was a drop of water,” Mrs. Lawley said.
For years, Maurice “Pops” Wyatt managed the marina, hotel and other aspects of the complex, said Holladay. The Wyatt family lived in a house on the premises.
Pops believed in giving patrons exceptional service, Holladay noted. For example, Pops made certain that people who spent weekends at Pine Harbor found their boat fueled and waiting in the water when they arrived.
At the height of the complex’s popularity, all of the slips in the marina were occupied, with a waiting list, said Barnett Lawley.
Chapel in the Pines
Part of Casady’s plan was for the people of Pine Harbor to be able to worship together. Casady built Chapel in the Pines for that reason, notes a 2002 chapel service program quoting the June 3, 1965, St. Clair News-Aegis. The first service at the outdoor chapel was June 6, 1965. First United Methodist Church in Pell City was sponsor of the services and a different pastor preached each week.
On Sunday mornings during summer months, families came to the chapel on foot, by car or boat to what became known as the “come as you are” church.
“We really enjoyed that,” said Mrs. DuBose, who with husband John had only to walk across the street.
Following the worship service, many would eat breakfast together at Pine Harbor’s restaurant, said Martin.
The residents gave much support to the chapel, she continued. Before the first service each summer, they came with brooms and rakes to clean around the pews and podium. That little lakeside chapel tucked among the pines was also the site of many weddings, Martin said. The receptions often were at the country club.
Clubhouse
In its lifetime, Pine Harbor had two different clubhouses.
The first one was across Pine Harbor Road from the hotel and restaurant.
Themed parties, fashion shows, galas, Christmas festivities, the Chevy 6 band, and dances featuring Dale Serrano and the music of Bob Cain and the Cane Breakers filled the schedule. The clubhouse had a pool, too.
In 1984, the DuBoses purchased the property from Ballard and lived there until 2010.
Ballard went to the exclusive Doral Golf and Country Club in Miami, Mrs. Lawley said.
Mrs. DuBose, a golfer, loved that her home was right next to the course. The tile in the bathrooms bore scuffs from golf-shoe traffic during the country club years. Though the DuBoses remodeled the home, they left the scuffed tile in one bathroom, just for nostalgia.
On occasion, the DuBoses had unexpected visitors – with golf clubs in hand – who thought the home was still the clubhouse.
The final Pine Harbor clubhouse was a smaller house near the golf course. It was where Wyatt’s family had lived when Pops was manager at the complex, said Holladay.
Changing times
Through the years, ownership of the Pine Harbor complex changed several times.
Sometimes, the efforts of a new owner were successful and, sometimes, they were not.
“It really had its highs and its lows,” said Barnett Lawley, former commissioner of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
In the 1970s, Lawley, Ballard, Billy Church and Eddie Lawrence formed a partnership to rescue the Pine Harbor complex from receivership, where it had gone under the previous owner, Mrs. Lawley said. As owners, the four partners worked to attract celebrity golfers and name-brand entertainment, demonstrating the value of Pine Harbor to the area. Club membership soared to its highest and Pine Harbor enjoyed its greatest popularity.
“And it stayed that way a long time,” Mrs. Lawley said.
The final owner in Pine Harbor’s history gave Pine Harbor Golf & Racquet Club (an association consisting of the membership) a long-term lease on the golf course and tennis courts.
Yet, circumstances eventually took their toll. First, an economic downturn in 2008 significantly reduced the number of golf memberships. Then, the lease expired. The City of Pell City’s efforts to negotiate a lease agreement with the owner failed.
Years earlier, the owner had razed the hotel and restaurant and filled in the nearby swimming pool. Subsequently, the second clubhouse was demolished too.
Chapel in the Pines moved to a spot in Pell City’s Lakeside Park, and the marina is home to University Marine at Pine Harbor Marina.
Now, remnants of the greens and fairways sit as quiet reminders of what used to be.
Recalling Pine Harbor’s glory days, Chris Jr. said, “The complex was fantastic, just a little ahead of its time. … We were so blessed to have that in our community for so long.”
Additional assistance with this article provided by Roger Pate and Savannah Pritchett, MS, RD, LD.
Clubhouse 1987
Memories of Pine Harbor
Just the mention of Pine Harbor’s golf course and the rest of the complex brings to people’s minds the memories of milestones they achieved, the special times they experienced and the funny things that happened there.
Rita Engelbrecht, Chris Spivey, Jo Jolly & Sue Pat DuBose
at Pine Harbor
Here are but a few:
“The only two holes-in-one I’ve had in my life were (at Pine Harbor and) on the same hole – No. 5,” said Jud Alverson.
Robin Glenn of Cropwell admits she knew nothing about golf when she went to work at the clubhouse in 2009. One day, a lady golfer ordered a sandwich to take on the course with her. Glenn prepared and gave the sandwich to the woman. Later, when the golfer returned to the clubhouse, she told Glenn that someone might find a sand wedge on the 18th hole. Curious as to why the woman had tossed the sandwich, Glenn asked, “You didn’t eat it?”
Chris Spivey Sr. was resourceful during her years of managing Pine Harbor’s golf course. Wanting to make the course’s grass lush, she enlisted a chicken farmer’s help to put manure on the fairways. “It did a good job,” chuckled her daughter, Chris Spivey Jr., in telling the story. “But you couldn’t go to the golf course for a week because of the smell.”
In the 1980s, some bigger courses limited weekend playing time for women. Chris Spivey Jr. believed women should be able to play any time and be accepted into men’s tournaments. Her parents – Chris Sr. and Bob Spivey – instituted both of Chris Jr.’s suggestions while they ran Pine Harbor’s golf course.
Chris Spivey Sr. was instrumental in starting Pine Harbor’s bridge club, even though she knew nothing about the game. “She loved every minute of it,” Chris Spivey Jr. said.
Pops Wyatt’s daughter, Cathy, ran a concession stand while her dad was manager of the marina and other parts of the Pine Harbor complex. Roy H. Holladay II met Cathy through her work … and married her.
