With a walking trail, mural, butterfly garden and more, community looking better than ever
Story by Paul South Photos by Richard Rybka Submitted Photos
Imagine Riverside without its new playground or there was no colorful mural welcoming one and all to town. What if there were no annual community soup supper, Santa’s arrival or Poker Run?
For the 2,251 who call this lakeside town home or the thousands more who visit each year, the allure wouldn’t be quite so inviting; the quality of life so appealing.
That’s why Riverside Beautification Organization is key to Riverside’s everyday life, making it better – brighter.
RBO began as a grassroots effort to beautify the city. Its premise is two-tiered: Organize events, activities and projects to benefit and showcase Riverside. And hold fundraisers to achieve those goals.
More than a garden club, the seeds for RBO were planted in 2008, right after Mayor Rusty Jessup took office.
“I knew there was a need for a good civic group here in town,” Jessup said. He met with several women interested in making Riverside a better place to live.
“I just wanted an organization interested in making Riverside a more beautiful place,” Jessup said. “It took off, and they’ve just done so much for our town.”
The small group of five blossomed into a small, all-volunteer group of women. In its early days, the group focused on planting flowers at city buildings and promoting volunteer recycling.
A stroll or drive down Depot Street these days showcases the RBO’s work – flower beds, a welcome sign, Landing decorations for the holidays, city building signage, a new playground at Riverside Park and walking trails in the park. Jessup could make a list.
The 501 (c) 3 nonprofit has grown into a catalyst for the construction of walking trails at the city park, maintaining the Lotus Pond – home to the native American Lotus only found in three places in St. Clair County – and building sanctuaries for birds – bluebirds, osprey, purple martins and wood ducks.
“When we adopted Lotus Pond, we realized that it would be nice to have walking trails throughout the park,” said Laura Pounders, who serves as RBO president. “With several grants and fundraisers, we’ve just now been able to complete the walking trails that connect the playground area to the ballfield area to the ponds and to the back fishing pond.”
The RBO hopes that one day, the area will be part of the Alabama Birding Trail.
“You know, we’re a small town. We don’t have a lot of resources,” Jessup said. “What we do have, we have to spend on police officers, the fire department; we just don’t have a lot of frills. Riverside Beautification Organization has helped to provide these things.”
Chimes in the Park
Grants, contributions from citizens, businesses and fundraising efforts finance the RBO’s efforts, and volunteer labor keeps the work more affordable.
It seems the RBO has done things great and small – from city hall landscaping to logo designs to signs pointing to city businesses and the new playground to lighted snowflakes and a nativity at Christmas.
Their work impacts the city’s ability to attract new businesses and new residents, Jessup said. It’s about quality of life
“It’s a tremendous help,” Jessup said. City parks and signs and the new playground are “things that add to the quality of life. That’s why a civic group (like RBO) is important. Everybody in town wants (these amenities). But they don’t want a tax increase. It’s great to have volunteers who step up and make these things happen.”
The RBO spent over three years writing grants and raising money for playground equipment and the park, Pounders said.
The organization is also trying to do more than beautify. It wants to build stronger ties between Riverside residents. A yearly, communitywide Soup Supper was held in late February and Santa’s arrival came in December.
A new community event to promote local crafters and artists, Spring Fling, is set for March 23. In 2023, 35 vendors sold their wares along with activities for children, including an egg hunt and the Easter bunny. More are expected this year, Pounders said.
Spring Fling turned out to be a fundraiser along with the Poker Run on the river in June, which has become an annual community event.
Future projects to be completed by the Poker Run in addition to the Riverside Post office mural is another mural behind the Landing designed and painted by Penny Arnold that will greet boaters as they prepare to dock or dine at nearby Buck’s Barbecue.
But the RBO is always looking for new ideas and new members in the growing city.
“The biggest thing that they do is that they create a sense of community, a sense of pride in the Riverside area,” Jessup said. “And it’s the kind of pride only citizens can provide. City leadership, we can do everything as far as making ends meet and meeting the basic needs of the community. But the citizens and volunteers of community are really what make quality of life. Without them, we would sorely miss the quality of life that Riverside offers.”
“We’ve clearly gone beyond planting flowers,” Pounders said. “We’ve all fallen in love with Riverside. The river and all the little tributaries that come off of it are beautiful.”
Riverside, she added, is “a pretty little town. Because it’s a small town, you get to know your neighbors. We’ve made so many friendships by opening up the RBO to anybody that’s interested in volunteering and being part of us.”
RBO has a wish five or 10 years down the road. “We could be more of an educational group,” Pounders said. “We could have school groups come into the park and learn about native plants and animals. Community education and participation are important.”
Just like its quality of life.
Editor’s Note:The Riverside Beautification Organization meets monthly and open to all residents. For more information, contact Pounders at juliepounders@yahoo.com
The perfect place to make a home on Neely Henry Lake
Story by Scottie Vickery Photos by Mackenzie Free
Connections are a vital part of Tracci Cordell’s life. She treasures the links to her past as much as she loves introducing friends and co-workers to each other, enlarging her tribe as a result. That’s why her new home on Neely Henry Lake has become the perfect refuge, a place that anchors her to her roots and allows her to strengthen bonds with those she loves.
“I wanted to have a place where everyone could just come and hang out,” she said of the home she built last year on property her parents owned for decades in the Riddles Bend area of the lake. “I don’t have a lot of family here now, but my friends have become family. Every good memory I have growing up happened right here, and now I’m making more.”
Friends Rainbow City Mayor Joe Taylor (center) and Southside Mayor Dana Snyder get in on the kitchen action with Cordell
Connection has become even more important to Cordell in recent years. In a 13-month period from January 2019 to February 2020, she lost her husband, Ron; her sister, Terri Maddock; her mother, Gail Maddock; and Scott Reed, a cousin who was like a brother.
“You have two choices when something like that happens,” she said. “You don’t go on, or you can just choose to live. Before he died, my husband said, ‘I want you to be happy and let your light shine.’”
That’s why, when Cordell moved into her new home last June, one of the first things she displayed on the entry table by the front door were wooden blocks that read “Choose Joy Today.” A painting of her childhood home in Gadsden, a gift from her sister Tammi, is surrounded by pictures of her loved ones.
These days, Cordell finds joy gazing out her windows at the sunlight dancing off the water or gathering a crowd around the firepit. One of her favorite things, though, is hosting the yearly “sauce-a-thon” when she and a group of friends help make 100 quarts of her mom’s Italian Spaghetti Sauce, just like Cordell used to do with her mother and two sisters.
The recipe, in her mother’s handwriting, is so special to Cordell that she had it made into wallpaper for her kitchen pantry. “She’d been making it all her life, but after she started getting older and had had a stroke, I knew we needed to pay attention,” Cordell said. “After she died, friends started coming to help and then more friends came. It’s just a big fun time.”
Dana Snyder, the mayor of Southside, is one of Cordell’s longtime friends who has rolled her sleeves up for the big event. Their friendship, however, has yielded much more than just delicious Italian sauce. Cordell introduced Snyder to another friend, Joe Taylor, who is the mayor of Rainbow City.
“The first time I met Dana was when Tracci bummed money from me for her campaign,” Taylor said with a laugh. All three worked for the City of Gadsden at the time, and as their friendship has grown through the years, so has their commitment to the lake that is such a vital part of their lives and communities.
The vast majority – about 79 percent – of Neely Henry’s 339 miles of shoreline is within the city limits of Southside and Rainbow City. As a result, Snyder said that she and Taylor have become professional partners of sorts in addition to being friends.
“When we were both elected, we said we were going to work together,” Snyder said. “Early on, we said we were going to be partners.” Taylor agreed, adding that “everything we do is to help each city. This lake is critical to the life of this region. It has to be one of the paramount issues when it comes to planning.”
Establishing roots
When Cordell built her home on Neely Henry, one of t was the fulfillment of a dream her parents had more than 45 years ago. Richard and Gail Maddock bought the lot in 1978 and it became the family’s favorite escape. The property wasn’t cleared and there were trees and brush all the way down to the river, but that didn’t stop Cordell and her sisters.
“My mom would cut a place out so she could put her chair and we would play in the water,” she said. “We came here every weekend and had birthday parties here. Eventually my parents built a T-shaped dock for Tammi, Terri, and Tracci.”
Their father, Richard, died of colon cancer at 59, and after their mother and sister passed away, Cordell and Tammi began the process of cleaning out and making hard decisions. Tammi lives in Virginia and Cordell had a house in Southside at the time, but they couldn’t bear the thought of selling the lake lot.
“We were cleaning out and found some house plans that Dad had made,” Cordell recalled. “We looked at each other and Tammi said, ‘We can’t get rid of it.’”
They soon found another sign. “I was a spoiled Daddy’s girl, and he always told me he bought this lot for my birthday,” Cordell said. She didn’t really believe it until they found paperwork showing the purchase was made on February 28, 1978, Cordell’s 7th birthday.
Once the decision was made, Cordell sold her house and stayed with some family friends during the building process. After moving in, she filled her home with specials memories from the past that she wanted to carry into her future. She refurbished her great-grandmother’s kitchen table and hung a picture of a maple tree in its full fall splendor nearby. “That was my dad’s favorite tree in Gadsden,” she said.
Just off the kitchen is a hallway to the laundry room, which features a collection of dozens of black and white photos of her family members and friends. Her husband is there, as is her daughter, Kelsi, a flight attendant who lives with Cordell when she’s not working. There are pictures of her parents, her sisters, her uncle Ronnie Reed, and other family members, as well as a host of friends and her boyfriend, Barry Ragsdale.
“These are my people,” she said. “They are my tribe. They’re family, and they’re friends who have come family.”
Cordell also cherishes the painting of her father that hangs in her bedroom. “He was over purchasing at Gulf State Steel for a long time and he was a suit and tie guy at work,” she said. “He was a wannabe farmer, though, so he would come home and put on his overalls and John Deere cap and head outside to his tractor.”
The three girls gave him the painting, which was created by Elaine Campbell, a family friend and artist, for Father’s Day one year. “It cost $600 and we each paid $200,” said Cordell, adding that it felt like a fortune since she was in high school at the time. Today, though, she considers the painting and the memories it evokes to be priceless treasures.
Large island gives plenty of room to help cook or dine
She feels the same way about the wallpaper in her pantry. After finding the index card with the handwritten recipe for Italian Spaghetti sauce that her mother got from a neighbor in 1979, Cordell had cutting boards featuring the recipe made for family members. After scouring Etsy, an online site featuring handmade and vintage items, she decided to have the recipe made into wallpaper.
“I thought about just doing one wall with the wallpaper but then I decided that if I could do a wall, why couldn’t I do a whole room,” Cordell said with a laugh. “It makes me smile every time I come in here.”
Chances are, the fact that Cordell continues to make the sauce makes her mother smile, as well. “I have such wonderful memories of making this sauce with my mom and my sisters,” she said. “There are no Italians in my family. Why my mother started making this sauce, I have no idea. But I think she would love that we’re still making it.”
Sauce-making day has steadily evolved over the years. “We used to make it outside, but it’s too hot,” Cordell said. “It’s usually the opening day of dove season. The men are in the woods and we’re in the kitchen, but we make them core the tomatoes before they leave.”
Cordell only uses tomatoes from Chandler Mountain, and she gets 10 half-bushel boxes. The first step is to lay them all out on blankets and tables and countertops “to look for any bad spots you might miss,” she said. “One may be getting mushy, so you’ve got to get it out of there.”
The day is as much fun as it is messy. “We have a really good time talking and laughing,” Cordell said. “It’s family, it’s making memories, and it’s just what we do.”
Lure of the lake
The fact that Cordell and her tribe have a beautiful view of the water makes the day even more wonderful. “It just means peace to me,” she said, adding that Taylor weighed in on her decision to build. “He said, ‘Whatever you do, don’t sell that lot,’” she said.
He and his wife Rachel have called Neely Henry home since 2016 and he said that lake property is much harder to come by because so many people keep it in the family for generations. Snyder knows that firsthand. “It took us several years to find a lot,” she said, adding that she and her husband Chris plan to start building within the next year.
The cherished painting of her father hangs in her bedroom, a gift to him on Father’s Day from the daughters
“I already say I’m a river rat, though,” she said. “My grandparents had a house in Whorton Bend and we’d go there every weekend. My grandfather would take us fishing and for rides on the pontoon boat. My aunt had a paddle boat, and we would just disappear.”
The passion Snyder, Taylor and Cordell share for the lake and the whole region has helped cement their friendship. In addition, all three have worked in different capacities for the City of Gadsden.
Cordell worked in the human resources department for more than 20 years before Mayor Craig Ford named her planning and zoning administrator last July. Part of her new duties include helping to guide and implement “GROW Gadsden,” the city’s new comprehensive plan. “The one driving force behind this plan has been the Coosa River that runs through Gadsden,” she said. “It is one of our most talked about assets.”
Snyder, who worked for a private law firm for 15 years before earning an accounting degree, transitioned from private practice to civil service when she joined the City of Gadsden’s legal department in 2009. She also served on the Southside City Council for four years before being elected mayor in 2020.
Although the mayoral position is officially part-time, Snyder left her full-time job with the city after she was elected to focus on her new duties. “I knew I couldn’t get anything done with a full-time job,” she said. “I’m one of those people who wants things done today and not tomorrow.”
Taylor joined the City of Gadsden in 1995 and served as a commander with the Fire Department after running a landscaping business and serving in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper and then in the Army National Guard. He also remodels houses and has refurbished and sold nearly 150.
“This job is is everything I had done before all rolled into one,” he said of his role as mayor, which he took on in 2020. “Dana and I have both been civil servants, and that has helped us in our role as mayors.”
Both mayors have also developed comprehensive plans for their cities, and they agree that finding ways for more people to enjoy Neely Henry needs to be a priority.
“As the cities grow, both of them, we’ve got to provide more public access (to the lake) for people who don’t live on the water,” Snyder said. “The fact that we are on this lake is the greatest asset we could ever have,” Taylor added.
As the owner of a new home on the water and her new role at work, Cordell understands that concept more than ever. “I have really come full circle from growing up on the river to helping make sure it is being showcased as the jewel it truly is. It’s home, and I can’t imagine ever living anywhere else.”
Italian Spaghetti
(Tracci Cordell)
1 pint Wesson oil 4 hot banana peppers, chopped 3 pounds onions, chopped ½ bushel tomatoes, unpeeled and quartered 2 whole heads garlic 1 cup sugar ½ cup salt 4 12-ounce cans of tomato past 1 tablespoon oregano 1 teaspoon sweet basil
Optional: 1 to 1 ½ pounds of ground beef, Italian sausage or ground turkey, cooked.
Simmer the tomatoes and garlic for about 1 ½ to 2 hours; more if necessary. Drain in a colander and return to pot. Saute banana peppers and onions in oil until soft and add to tomato mixture. Add sugar, salt, tomato paste, oregano, and basil and bring to a full boil. Put into jars and seal. Yields 12 quarts of sauce with meat or 9 quarts of sauce without meat.
Italian Salad and Dressing
(Dana Snyder, Mayor of Southside)
Salad: Use a variety of greens, such as romaine, kale and spinach 1 medium red onion, sliced ½ cup grated parmesan cheese 1 cup pepperoncini peppers Kalamata olives Salt and pepper to taste Croutons
Italian Dressing: 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp dried oregano 1 tsp dried basil ½ tsp salt ½ cup extra virgin olive oil 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
Mix all ingredients together in a jar with a lid. Shake vigorously until all ingredients are combined. Shake again before each use.
Story by Roxann Edsall Photos by Mackenzie Free Submitted Photos
In the heart of Gadsden, there stands an unassuming brick apartment building. It seems rather unremarkable for 2024, but if one were to step back in time just a few decades, to the year 1930, this same building was quite remarkable.
Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly visited the hotel
It was Feb. 12 at 10 a.m. when the doors officially opened for business at the swanky, 10-story brick Reich Hotel. Adolph Reich, the hotel’s owner, was commended by industry peers for the quality of the furnishings and décor. Dignitaries and guests celebrated Gadsden’s modern luxury hotel on into the early morning hours.
The hotel business had been a part of the Reich family since Adolph’s father, Hungarian-born David Reich, purchased Gadsden’s Printup Hotel in 1894. The Printup had been built by the Gadsden Hotel Company in 1888, in large part as a response to housing needs that resulted from the addition of the Rome-to-Gadsden branch of the Southern Railway. A train station was conveniently located across the street from the hotel’s lobby.
David and his wife, Lottie, owned and managed the Printup until David’s death in 1914. At that time, Adolph took over ownership and made major renovations to this property and began dreaming of building a more modern facility. The opening of the Reich Hotel 16 years later was the fulfilling of a promise made to his mother, that one day Adolph would build his dream hotel for Gadsden.
Gadsden, at the time, was an important port city. People and goods moved along the Coosa River, bringing much-needed supplies, guests and new citizens, many needing a temporary place to stay. The 1930 opening of the Reich Hotel was both perfect and challenging timing for Adolph’s new venture.
It was good in that the new Goodyear Tire Gadsden plant had just been built, and executives needed lodging. It was unfortunate timing in that the hotel opened just a few months into the start of the Great Depression. Despite the bleak times, the hotel thrived, and Adolph and the Reich Hotel became well known in the community. Reich’s hotel business continued to do well through World War II and into the early 1960s.
Wade’s father, Bobby, with a football ice sculpture
The Reich was the site of many social affairs over the years, ranging from weddings to high school proms. “I used to be a schoolteacher, and we had a lot of Christmas parties there at the Reich Hotel,” said Gary Garrett, president of the Etowah Historical Society. “It was beautiful. My mother was a hairdresser, and she used to have a lot of the beauty conventions there, too. I knew the son, Bobby, through my mother.”
Adolph’s son, Robert “Bobby” Reich had graduated from the University of Alabama and gotten into the hotel business himself, building the Guest House Hotel in Birmingham. Bobby eventually sold that hotel and returned to Gadsden to help manage the Reich Hotel.
By the mid 60s, the interstate highway systems made traveling by car more popular, and the hotel industry began to lean more toward “motel” type properties, downplaying the grand lobby style hotels. In response, Adolph took out a bank loan, and Bobby oversaw a major remodel of the Reich, beginning by tearing off the roof to build a patio and swimming pool and adding the additional comfort of air conditioning. Then a motel wing was added, and the name was changed to the Reich Motor Hotel. All rooms were refurnished with modern furniture. The old furniture was sent to the Printup Hotel, which Reich still owned.
Bobby’s son, Wade Reich, was in 7th grade when they put in the pool at the Reich, and he remembers enjoying that. But, he admits, he had an even better time in the elevator. “I loved operating the Otis hand-crank elevator,” he says. “We’d crank it up to the 6th floor and then let it drop to the lobby. Your stomach would be up in your throat. That was a lot of fun!”
The transition to the motor hotel model and the million-dollar renovation were the beginnings of the end for the Reich Hotel. Marketing the new motor hotel product did not go well. Bobby ended up selling his family’s Gadsden home and moving into the Reich Hotel to keep it afloat.
When that didn’t work, in 1972, the Reich Hotel was sold, and the family moved into the Printup. The hotel building is still standing, now renamed Daughette Towers and operates as a government-subsidized apartment building serving seniors and disabled adults.
With the Reich Hotel closed, Bobby and his wife, Jane, focused their efforts on the Printup Hotel. They converted a space where Mrs. Tarpley’s Flower Shop had been in the Printup Hotel and opened a small café they called the Whistle Stop. However, the new café wasn’t enough to revive the aging debt-ridden hotel, which was, by now, surrounded by vacant buildings. In December of 1973, the Printup checked out its final hotel guest.
The Reichs retained ownership of the building, offering spaces for ground leases, including a car repair shop, barber and beauty shops, a taxi service and a dress shop.
Wade and Eachin Reich
While Bobby and Jane focused on saving the Printup, their son, Wade Reich, completed his college degree in business administration and marketing. After graduation, in 1974, he and his parents painted the Printup lobby and opened a new restaurant called Poppo’s, the name paying homage to Wade’s grandfather, Adolph.
The restaurant stayed in business until 1978, when, Wade says, “it became apparent the future would be better for family if we sold the building.”
Having sold the building, Wade went to work for Dan Wallace, the inspiration for the movie Big Fish, whose company specialized in grocery store premiere promotions. That venture ended up sending him to London, which led to a new job with a similar business in Paris.
Wade and his wife, Jennifer, spent 14 years living in Paris. Although he loved Paris, Wade does have one regret. He never attended the famed Le Cordon Bleu culinary school. “I could have done Cordon Bleu, but I didn’t,” Wade laments. “It’s crazy! I’d spent countless hours taking customers to all the fine restaurants in Europe. I wish I’d done it.”
Wade and Jennifer returned to the Birmingham area in 2002 to be close to his aging mother. He worked in the grocery store promotions business again for a little while. Then a friend asked him to help run a gas station in Pell City. He came to run the Chevron station near downtown Pell City. Then, in 2008, he and his business partner bought the Texaco station across the street. In 2009, they started smoking butts and ribs there for holidays under the name Butts To Go.
In the 15 years since it opened, Butts To Go has been featured in several publications internationally, including The Toronto Star, USA Today, The Guardian (London), and in Southern Living magazine. They were also featured in the cookbook travelogue The South’s Best Butts by Matt Moore. In late 2021, Butts To Go left the Texaco, and after a brief partnership with The Kitchen, they landed in the old Dominos location on Mays Drive.
Wade has worked long hours all his life and admits to being a “tinkerer.” He started a new venture last year with his son, Eakin. By day, Wade works at Butts To Go, but at night, he’s busy helping wherever he is needed at The Grill at the Farm, a restaurant which opened just nine months ago off Logan Martin Dam Road.
Eakin returned to Cropwell from Key West, where he was food and beverage director at Jimmy Buffett’s famed Margaritaville Beach House Resort. Now he manages The Grill and is busy developing plans for the next stages of the property’s growth. “It owns me,” Eakin admits. “It’s been fun being here from the ground up. And it’s good to be near family.”
Plans for the future of the 62 acres the restaurant sits on are still in the development stages, Wade says. “We’re trying to figure it out,” he adds. “We have event space right now for 130 people. If we fixed up the barn and added a kitchen out there, we would be able to do bigger things. We’re still working on what it will be.” Whatever The Grill is or is to become, he says, “we wouldn’t be doing this if Eakin weren’t here.”
As busy as they are, the Reich family continues to give back to community that has supported their businesses. Recently, they helped with food for events for Dovetail Landing, a veteran transition and wellness facility being built in Lincoln, and for the Wellhouse, a home for female victims of human trafficking in St. Clair County.
Family, hospitality and community. The legacy now lives on through five generations of the Reich family.
Pro fishing tips on Logan Martin Lake and Neely Henry Lake with Zeke Gossett
Logan Martin
Days are getting longer, and bass are on the move. Warmer and longer days these two months have the fish on the move from their wintertime homes.
Typically, in March, I still believe the bass are in their pre-spawn mood. They are feeding up and fattening up, preparing to move into their bedding areas to get ready to spawn. Usually, I’ll target most of these fish in 10 feet of water or less this time of year.
Fish love to stage on points that lead into spawning bays. Also, brush and shallow docks are great places to look for fish making a pitstop before they spawn. A few lures I typically reach for would be a bladed jig, square bill crank bait, or a topwater walking bait.
If the water is still in the mid-50s, I’ll reach mainly for the bladed jig and squarebill and cover as much water as possible. I mainly target creeks on the lower end of the lake. Generally, this is where the fish will try and spawn first.
I also like to target windy banks if possible. Once the water temp reaches the 60-degree mark, that’s when I will reach for the topwater walking bait. I do this especially on cloudy, windy days. The fish will usually be one- to three-feet deep on points.
Do not be afraid to throw it midday if the conditions are right. This is my favorite technique to catch these fish, especially in April. If we have our normal weather pattern, you will really start to see the largemouth bass lock on their beds. This is the time get the spinning rods out and get on the finesse gear.
The tried-and-true wacky rigged Senko is an awesome way to get these bedding largemouth bass to commit. Now, I do switch gears when it comes to fishing for spotted bass. Spotted bass tend to spawn in shallow bays and flats in a little deeper water.
An awesome way to cover water and efficiently pick these broader areas apart is with a Carolina Rig. Typically, I use about a 2-foot leader with a ½ oz. tungsten sinker.
One of my favorite baits to use is a Menace Grub from Strike King Lure Company in green pumpkin or chartreuse pepper. I typically want a smaller bait. That way, once you drag it across their bed, they can easily just pick it up and hold on to it longer. This a great way to catch those big ole Coosa River Spotted Bass later on in the month once the fish really start to lock down on bed.
Neely Henry
These two months are when Neely Henry can really shine and produce some big fish. Just like Logan Martin, these fish are on the move once the days start getting longer and warmer.
Neely Henry bass love to live shallow this time of year. My approach is a little different though on this lake. I typically like to target mid-lake areas this time of year.
My favorite places to find these fish are creeks mouths and small river pockets. Neely has a lot of bank grass and wood to offer in these short pockets. These pockets also have a lot of shallow docks that fish like to stage on before the spawn.
My three favorite baits to use are a frog, swim jig and stick bait. Typically, in early March, I will fish with the swim jig a lot more than the other two baits because the water temperature is usually still on the cooler side.
Another great way to find fish on Neely Henry this early in the spawn is on rip rap banks. These banks hold heat and tend to hold fish any time of day. A squarebill crankbait is usually what I will start with on the rip rap banks.
I normally have to play with a number of colors to find the right one! If the bass do not seem to want the crankbait, I’ll slowly fish down the rip rap with a jig, especially if it’s a very slick, calm day.
Just like Logan Martin you can also catch fish around shallow docks. Typically, the docks in five foot or less tend to be the best. If the fish seem to be active, I’ll start out with a bladed jig. The bladed jig allows me to make more cast in and in turn, I am able to present the bait to more fish.
Just like the rip rap talked about earlier, sometimes on slick calm days, the jig will outperform any bait on the docks. Once the water temp reaches the 60-degree mark, that’s when I’ll pick up the frog. The frog and swim jig combo is something I can stick with all day.
Once we get into the month of April, that’s when I will start adding in the stick bait. And just like on Logan Martin, you can’t forget about the trusted Senko type bait.
I generally Texas rig the Senko on light 5/16 oz. weight. I really reach for this bait when I feel like the fish are in full blown spawning mood. I’ll pitch this bait around stumps and docks or wherever I feel like a fish might be spawning.
You might not be able to physically see the fish since Neely is generally pretty dirty water. Just fish slow inside pockets and really pick everything apart. This is the best way to get bit while the fish are really locked on beds.
The bass are in big time transition during these two months, however, these months can offer up some of the most rewarding fish catches for the entire year
On the Saturday of the 2023 inaugural Alabama Fishing Show at The Venue at Coosa Landing, Gadsden’s director of economic development, John Moore, decided to check things out.
What he saw was jaw dropping.
“The doors opened at 10. I pulled in about 9:45, and I swear to you, there were at least 400 to 500 people waiting to get in,” Moore says. “The thing stretched out from the Venue, and it just wrapped around in the parking lot.
“I was like, ‘What the heck?’ There’s something here on this. I was just amazed. People starve for stuff like this.”
Indeed, there was. An estimated 7,500 visitors streamed to the event, anglers shopping for everything from handmade rods and tackle to high tech electronic fish finders.
The Alabama Fishing Show returns to The Venue at Coosa Landing, March 8-10. Daily prices are $12 for adults, $8 for kids. Children under 5 get in free. Food and drinks are available for sale. Parking is free.
Hours are 10 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. on Friday; 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The Gadsden event was years in the making before its debut. Alabama Fishing Show organizer Shelia Bunch began discussions with the city several years ago about bringing the East Tennessee Fishing Show to Alabama. For Bunch, geography was the draw.
“You guys have some of the greatest lakes down there. You’ve got some of the best pro fishermen from that area. One thing that was missing was a true fishing show,” Bunch says.
A true fishing show is about more than watercraft, she adds. “I’m talking about bringing vendors from all over with products that you can’t even get anywhere else except for this show. You’ve got handmade fishing rods, you’ve got crankbaits. You’ve got jigs that you can’t buy anywhere else but this show. And a lot of these vendors are small business people. Their passion is all about fishing and about catching fish. They work day and night on their products.”
Along with featuring more than 100 vendors casting their wares upon the water to sell, Bunch hopes to reach a new, younger generation of anglers. The 2024 show will host a kids’ fishing tournament at the Venue on March 9.
Introducing kids to fishing is a goal of the show, Bunch, a mother of three, says. “We feel like kids are our future when it comes to fishing. Our goal is to give kids the opportunity to fish and make it a big deal, right there at the show.”
Pro anglers will appear at the show, and seminars are also slated to educate anglers on how to use the equipment and make their fishing experience more enjoyable.
“We try to make it a fisherman’s paradise,” Bunch says. But the show has something to hook the entire family.
“The mothers are really involved in the kids’ fishing tournament,” Bunch says. “We honor the women and give away hats to the wives who put up with the fishermen. The first 200 (women) through the door get a free hat. They really love that.”
She adds, “It’s a great place for families to connect.”
The show will highlight the hottest trends in fishing. Electronics lead the pack.
“Every year, Lowrance or Hummingbird or Power-Pole or any of them, they come out with something new every year,” Bunch says. Those will be on display at the show. A lot of people buy this equipment and don’t know how to use it, so we will have people who come and do seminars to show you how to use your electronics.”
Safety and environmentally friendly equipment are also trending, Bunch says.
“Safety and taking care of your lakes and taking care of your fish is a big thing. That’s why you have catch and release … When you catch fish, you need to save the fish.”
Like Moore, Bunch was “shocked” by the big turnout in the inaugural show, because it was a new event in unfamiliar waters, so to speak. This year, she expects an even bigger turnout.
“We’re wanting about 10,000 this year,” Bunch says. “That’s my goal.”
As an aside, one in six Americans are anglers. And, the sport is growing.
For Bunch, putting on the fishing show are measured in smiles.
“Truthfully, my favorite part is seeing my vendors do well – for them to walk away with smiles on their faces and me knowing that they did well at the show. My second favorite part is seeing the people leave there with smiles on their faces, knowing they got supplies they couldn’t get anywhere else.” Anglers – from offshore to fly fishermen – who attend the fishing show can up their game without breaking the bank, and they share a common mission with vendors.
“The goal is to catch a big fish,” Bunch says.
Moore believes the COVID-19 pandemic that kept folks shuttered for two years played a role in the huge turnout, and something more.
“I think (the pandemic) had something to do with it. Number two is that there’s nothing like it within a 60-mile radius. You have to go to Birmingham to the (Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center) or to Huntsville to Von Braun to see a show of this magnitude with this many vendors.”
And vendors were hooked on Gadsden.
“They signed up that day for (2024),” Moore says.
The show fits with Gadsden’s branding efforts as a tourist destination, Moore says.
“The mayor (Craig Ford) always says that not only do we have a responsibility to our citizens, but we have a responsibility to our merchants, too, bringing stuff like this in here.
“It actually helps grow our economy. Every hotel room in Etowah County is filled. The shops will be filled. It’s perfect. The wife may go and shop downtown, while the husband looks for fishing supplies. There were a lot of buddies going to the show in sort of a guys’ trip.”
At the end of the day, he adds, “what we’re looking for is to be ‘Fun Town’. We’re looking to be that city that people look to spend three, four, five days enjoying the river, the mountains, the downtown area, the shopping,” Moore says. “I think the fishing show plays into that.”
Along with a crowd, Bunch hopes to hook something else – for vendors and attendees alike. “I just want everyone to do well and be happy.”
Clearly an evangelist for fishing, Bunch captures the spirit of the show. “Fishing is a great time for families, and you can’t get those times back.”
Carol’s apron says it all. Greek to you? Translation: Good Appetite!
Carol Pappas was in elementary school when a teacher asked the students which food they would want if they were marooned on a desert island. While the other kids’ answers were fairly predictable – pizza, hamburgers or chicken fingers – Carol’s answer was a little different. “I said I would want Greek salad,” she said.
A descendant of Greek immigrants, Carol said the salad, complete with olives and feta cheese, was a staple in their Birmingham home during her childhood. Although her love of Greek cuisine remains a vital part of her identity, her taste in food is not the only thing influenced by her Greek heritage. Her appreciation of community and life on the water stems from her family, especially her father’s side, as well.
“My dad was born in Kastoria,” a city in northern Greece built on Lake Orestiada, she said. “It was fate that I ended up here.”
“Here” is her lakefront home in Logan Martin Lake’s Pine Harbor, the neighborhood she’s called home for nearly four decades. Her love of life on the water, Pell City, and St. Clair County is so ingrained, in fact, that she is the editor and publisher of two magazines that celebrate all the area has to offer, Discover St. Clair Magazine, and this one, LakeLife 24/7®
“I tell everyone that I was born in Birmingham, but Pell City and St. Clair County is my home,” she said.
Greg Pappas with his famous baked lamb
A reporter for 40 years, Carol is much more comfortable being the writer, rather than the subject. It seems fitting, however, for the person who has penned so many stories about St. Clair County and its people to finally share part of her own. In the spirit of sticking to the truth, Carol’s principle for her career in journalism, it’s important to note that the original story planned for this feature fell through at the last minute. So after a little bit of arm twisting (okay, a lot), Carol agreed to share some of the things that define her: her Greek heritage, her love for family and friends, casual gatherings on the water, and the Greek style of cooking, which will always be her favorite.
“My (maternal) grandmother was a big influence in our kitchen and so was my mother,” Carol said. “Everything had a Greek flair to it. If we had baked fish, it was Greek style with lemon and olive oil. We had Greek salad nearly every night, and Sunday dinner was usually chicken or roasted lamb.”
Celebrating roots
Carol’s father, Ernest Pappas, emigrated to the United States with his father when he was 13, and he settled in Birmingham where they had relatives. Her maternal grandparents, Tom and Kaliopi Pappas, had emigrated, as well, and were raising their family in Indiana. Although the families were not related, they share the common Greek surname.
Vickie with one of her specialties, Baklava
After graduating from Auburn University and serving in World War II, Ernest returned to Birmingham “My father was on his way to a wedding in Chicago, and someone told him, ‘There’s this nice Greek family in Fort Wayne, Indiana. You should stop and visit them,’” Carol said. “It sounds strange, but that was the way of life for Greeks at the time.”
Ernest did, he met the family’s four daughters, and fell in love with Blanche. After they married, they made their home in Birmingham’s Crestwood neighborhood, and Ernest served as general manager and a shareholder with Home Baking Company.
They took pride in their Greek heritage and instilled it in their children. Carol and her siblings, Greg and Vickie, still hold the culture and traditions dear. Greg, in fact, owns Pappas’ Grill in Vestavia Hills, which he opened in 1992 after working at and managing other restaurants.
The restaurant’s sole chef, Greg cooks up favorite Greek classics such as Pastichio (Greek Lasagna), Moussaka and Stuffed Grape Leaves. Many are his family’s favorite dishes, while others are recipes he developed and perfected.
Although Vickie and Carol aren’t in the restaurant business, they both love to cook and are inspired by the meals that marked their childhood. “My mother made the best Greek Snapper,” Carol said. “It just melted in your mouth. I’ve never tasted anything like it.”
The dish was such as family favorite, it became known to the grandchildren as “Fish a la Yia-Yia,” since yia-yia is a common Greek term for grandmother. “I make it, but it’s not anything like hers,” Carol said.
Vickie mastered Spanakopita, a Greek pie with layers of dough to form the crust and filled with spinach and feta cheese, and she recently taught Carol to make it. “We made the crust from scratch, and the recipe was handed down from my grandmother to my mother,” she said. “I had helped my mother with it, but I had never cooked it myself.”
In addition to stews and fish dishes that were mainstays during her childhood, the family often enjoyed three different whole chicken meals. There was the Greek style roasted chicken, one with tomato sauce, and one stuffed with sauerkraut and rice, which was Carol’s favorite. “I later adapted that recipe because I wasn’t going to cook a whole chicken,” she said with a laugh. “I use chicken breasts and serve it over a bed of sauerkraut and rice.”
Carol said her mother helped start the Holy Trinity-Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Cathedral Greek Food Festival, which recently celebrated its 51st year. One of Carol’s favorite cookbooks, The Greeks Have a Recipe for It, was compiled by the ladies in the church, including her mother and the mothers of her friends. “They’re all the Greek people I grew up with,” she said.
It’s a tattered binder filled with recipes that is among her most treasured possessions, however. One Christmas, she had it reprinted and bound and gave it to members of her family. It features Greek foods based on the Mediterranean diet of fish, chicken, fresh vegetables, and olive oil.
“It’s a very healthy way to eat,” Carol said. “We never had a lot of fried food growing up; everything was baked or broiled. We never used any kind of batter. I didn’t have fried okra until I was in high school, and I had fried green tomatoes for the first time in college. It was a whole new discovery for me.”
A mother’s influence
Just as her mother was a big influence in the kitchen, Blanche Pappas also played an important role in Carol’s career path, which led her to St. Clair County. “I wrote a book report in high school and Mother read it,” she recalled. “She said, ‘You’re a really good writer. You should go into journalism.’”
Since the most common professions for women at the time were teaching and nursing – neither of which seemed like a fit for Carol, she took her mother’s advice. After graduating from Auburn, she took a reporting job with the St. Clair Observer, a weekly newspaper published in Pell City that later was sold and merged into the St. Clair News Aegis. After working in Birmingham for a few years, she joined the staff of The Daily Home as a reporter and became the Pell City bureau chief about five years later. She remained with the paper for 28 years, rising through the ranks before retiring in 2010 as editor and publisher.
Carol soon started Partners by Design, a multimedia marketing and graphic design firm, and serves as president and CEO. Graham Hadley, who was managing editor for The Daily Home, joined the venture and is vice president of the creative division and chief operating officer. In addition to publishing Discover St. Clair Magazine and LakeLife 24/7 Magazine, the company provides consulting, graphic design, photography, social media and marketing services.
The great room at Carol’s, which opens to the kitchen
One of the best parts of her journalism career, according to Carol, is that it brought her to Pell City, the community she is proud to call home. “Pell City was very welcoming to me from the very beginning, and I found that to be true of all of St. Clair County,” she said. “I never thought of myself living in a small town, but it’s been wonderful. Everybody watches out for one another, and it just has a good feeling.”
She moved to the area in 1985 and was fortunate to be able to rent a home on the lake. The water had been an important part of her father’s childhood in Greece, and Carol inherited her love of it from him. She visited Logan Martin often with friends during high school and college, and she has wonderful memories of her father teaching her to fish at Lake Purdy, near Birmingham.
“He missed the water, so they came up all the time,” she said of her parents. “Crappie runs through here, and he would sit and fish for hours. One day we were on the pier, and I told him about a house down the street that was coming on the market. Before I could ask him what he thought about me buying it, he said yes.”
In addition to giving his blessing, her father helped buy the first boat, Carol said. “We called it a recreational partnership,” she added.
Carol said it took five years to afford to renovate the house, but the result is a 3-bedroom, 2.5-bath home with a with two-tiered deck, a screened porch, and a stunning view of the water.
It’s a favorite gathering place for family and friends, especially for Auburn football games in the fall. “I used to have a bar towel that said, ‘You never know how many friends you have until you have a lake house,’” Carol said and laughed. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Carol is active in the adopted community she loves. She served as board chair of the Pell City Center for Education and the Performing Arts and was on the board there for 11 years and is a member of the Pell City Rotary Club. She is also president of the Museum of Pell City, housed in a 4,000 square foot suite in the Municipal Complex. The museum is a celebration of the city’s history, as well as the history of St. Clair County and Alabama.
Lasting legacy
It’s a fitting role for someone who has been shaped by her own heritage and family history. Although her parents are gone now, Carol said she would always be grateful for the values they instilled in their children and for her Greek heritage, which places high value on family, friends and community.
It’s why she shares her love for St. Clair County and its people through Discover St. Clair Magazine and her love for the water inspired LakeLife 24/7.
It’s also what helped to lead her home – to a house she loves with a view she cherishes and neighbors who have become family.
“Now that I’ve lived on the water, I could never live anywhere else,” she said. “No matter how bad the day might get, when you get home and look out on the water, it’s like being on vacation all the time. The sunsets are breathtaking, the water is calming, and it just fills me with peace. It’s a beautiful place to call home.”
GREEK SALAD
Dressing:
½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
¼ cup wine vinegar
1 tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. oregano
Place all ingredients in a covered container and shake well. Set aside until ready to serve.
Salad: In a bowl, place the equivalent of one head of lettuce or assorted greens
2 tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 cucumber sliced
3 scallions chopped or the 2 thin red onion slices cut in half rings
½ cut pitted Kalamata olives
½ cup Feta cheese, crumbled
Add dressing and serve. Serves: 4
TIROPETES (Cheese Triangles)
3 eggs
3 oz. cream cheese
½ lb. Feta cheese
½ lb. melted butter
½ lb. cottage cheese
1 lb. Phyllo pastry sheets
Combine cheese and mix well. Add eggs, one at a time. Cut each pastry sheet into 3-inch strips. (The pastry sheets come in a roll, so you can cut the roll into sections with an electric knife and then roll out section of strips as need. Keep a damp cloth over the unused portions to avoid drying.) Brush the strip with melted butter. Place one teaspoon of the filling on one end of strip and cover over to make a triangle. Continue folding from side to side in the form of a triangle. (Like the paper football from childhood) Proceed this way until all pastry strips are used. Place the triangles on a buttered cookie sheet. Brush tops with melted butter. Bake on 350 degrees until lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Makes about 75 pieces.
Notes: Uncooked triangles store well in a tight container in freezer with layers of wax paper in between each row. Simply pull out what you need, bake and you have a great appetizer for company! You can add thawed, frozen spinach to mixture halfway through and make Spanakopites for the remainder.
Story by Paul South Photos by Mackenzie Free and David Smith
Indy, hit the bricks. Daytona, Schmaytona.
When it comes to racing fast boats and fast cars, this Alabama city of 6,845 may be –at least per capita – the speediest town in America.
After all, Lincoln is home to the Alabama Superspeedway. And in November, the city’s picturesque Lincoln’s Landing on the waters of Logan Martin Lake, hosted its first drag boat race.
Think drag racing on the water in sleek, low-slung boats. The premier category of drag boats, Top Fuel, can pierce the water at up to 270 mph.
These boats look fast even when they are not moving
The city’s inaugural drag boat event was a success. Even though attendance was hampered by rainy weather, Lincoln has gone throttle up, making a pitch for drag boat racing’s world championship later this year.
The November race was an effort for Lincoln to get “a foot in the door” in the sport, with an eye toward hosting the world championship, Les Robinson, director of Lincoln’s Landing says.
“That’s kind of the way we looked at it and how we approached it,” Robinson says. “It was a new venue for these guys as well. It’s never been done on this part of (Logan Martin). I don’t know if it’s been done on any part of the lake.”
Drag boat race organizers traveled to Lincoln two or three times to evaluate the site, Robinson says.
“We felt like the venue that we have here would be more than adequate for what they were looking for. We came up with an idea for where the course needed to be.”
Rain and cold put a chill on the turnout, but the racing continued.
“They still ran. They contemplated calling it off. But they had people come from all over the United States and Canada to be here and they wanted to do it,” Robinson says.
Most of the Outdoor Drag Boat Association’s regional points race was visible from the grand pavilion at Lincoln’s Landing, where race fans warmed themselves by a roaring fireplace. Boaters from 42 teams competed in a variety of classifications.
If the city lands the world championship, it will be held the weekend before the Lowe’s RV Stop 250 and the 2024 Fall Xfinity Series Playoff Race on Oct. 4 and Oct. 5 respectively.
The NASCAR 2024 Yellawood 500 is set for Oct.6, and Lincoln officials want the race to coincide with Talladega’s autumn speed week.
“That was the plan,” Robinson says. “It’s not etched in stone that they’re coming, and it’s not etched in stone for the date. But that’s the plan.”
Race start
The ODBA teams arrived at midweek prior to the November race, filling nearby motel rooms and boosting the local economy.
The Lincoln’s Landing staff conducted a post-race review, and the venue and personnel earned high marks.
“The facility and the way the park is laid out was perfect for what (the ODBA) was doing,” Robinson says. “There was one situation where we could have had a little bit better flow where they were weighing the boats and where they were taking the fuel samples … But the park layout was great for the racers as well as the spectators.”
Watson and Robinson praised the work of Lincoln’s first responders – law enforcement, fire and EMTs, a veteran force familiar with staffing these types of events.
“Most of these folks have been with us a long time. This is part of their training. It’s their training and their dedication to the job. It’s the whole team,” Watson says.
The only downside – the park had to be closed for fishing on race day because of the course layout. And there is noise.
“(The boats) do create a bit of noise, but we did put that on Facebook that they would be running from 9-5 every day.”
As far as the city’s pitch for the 2024 ODBA world championship, Lincoln’s Landing did the talking.
“I think the park did all the pitching we need,” Robinson says. “I think our facility gave them the idea that ‘This is where we want to be.’ We hope that’s the case. I’m hoping for a positive outcome.”
Mayor Carroll “Lew” Watson agrees.
“We have facilities that aren’t matched by anybody else,” Watson says. “Our facilities are really the top of the chart. We may have to add viewing stands to attract more visitors so they can sit and watch. We have good sites, so that probably will be something for the future.”
Watson thinks city officials should travel to the sites of similar events to learn how those communities prepare and execute those events.
As for Lincoln becoming a racing capital, Robinson says, “If we’re fortunate enough to land this, and we’re pretty confident the races aren’t going anywhere at Talladega (speedway), (ODBA World Championship) could become an annual event for us, I like the analogy.”
If the city gets the world championship, what about the idea of Lincoln becoming a racing capital.
“It would certainly suggest that,” Watson says.
On drag boat racing, Watson says, “I never even knew such an animal existed. But it was interesting to watch. It came off very well. When you go see a drag race, it’s not much different, except one’s on the road and one’s on the water.”
The race and other events are evidence that Lincoln officials are using the landing for more than just a fishing spot.
“We’re capitalizing on what we’ve got, and we’re making the most of it,” Robinson says. “We’ve had three world class fireworks shows out here attracting thousands of people. We never thought that was anything that could be done at the landing until we tried. Everything we’ve done, we had to work really hard to make it happen.”
And the staff had to weather tornadoes and floods, cold and snow to pull off events.
“My staff and I joke, ‘What are they going to throw at us next?’” Robinson says.
The new year is setting up to be a good one for Lincoln’s Landing, which opened in 2020. Fireworks, bass tournaments, a kayak fishing tournament and other events – and a possible world championship – are on the calendar for 2024.
“No matter whether they’re fishing in a bass boat, a kayak or driving a drag boat, they’re all contributing to the local economy. That’s what this place was built for – to bring in events and bring in revenue.”
Ask just about anyone who lives or plays on Logan Martin Lake for directions to General Lee Campground and Marina, and they’ll point you toward Treasure Island, across the water from St. Clair Shores.
The 16-foot-tall orange and blue Gulf sign easily identifies the campground and serves as a beacon for sunbaked campers coming home from a day on the lake.
Ashley Morton has never known a life that wasn’t heavily influenced by the campground, both the business end and the people who make up the community. She was born into the business, and it has matured alongside her. Now she and her husband, Scott, have continued what her grandparents and great grandparents built, managing the day-to-day operations of the campground at General Lee.
Craig, Ashley and Scott in front of a classic Gulf sign
Ashley grew up around the campground, spending most afternoons and summers helping her grandparents, Jean and Sonny (Floyd) Goodgame, with chores around the property. Jean made sure Ashley learned life skills while in her care. “Grand momma taught me what I know about handling money and running a business,” says Ashley.
“In the store, we played what we called ‘grocery games,’ where she would give me a $10 budget and tell me to bring as much food as I could buy with it. But I had to figure in taxes as well. We had fun and learned a lot.”
“My family lived really close to the campground, so my cousin, Blair (Goodgame), and I would ride our bikes to the campground to play,” continues Ashley. “It was so much fun that Blair and I would hide under a pier when they called us to go home. We didn’t ever want to leave.” To this day, summers at the General Lee are teeming with children. It’s a tradition of summer fun that Ashley hopes to share with her own two girls, 3-year-old Aspen and 9-month-old Presley.
Grand momma Jean made things fun for her grandchildren, but she also made sure they learned and practiced the right way do chores, like raking leaves. “Grand momma taught us that you don’t rake them into piles,” Ashley explains. “Of course, we did a little bit, so we could jump in them. But she taught us to rake them into lines so we could burn them safely.”
Leaf raking was, and still is, a never-ending need at the campground. The beautiful trees that provide much-needed shade in the summer relentlessly cover the roads with leaves in the fall and winter months. It is those trees around which the children ride their bikes and conduct squirt gun battles and play hide and seek games in the thick of the summer heat.
And around those trees are nestled the campers and tents that house visitors in spring, summer and fall. There are 111 camping spots, some with full sewer hookups, and others with just water and power. A bathhouse, store with bait and covered storage round out the amenities.
People have been enjoying the amenities at the General Lee since just after the impounding of the Coosa River, which created Logan Martin Lake in 1965. Jean and Sonny, along with Jean’s parents, Clarence and Pauline Lee, built the campground and marina, which opened in 1966, originally selling Chevron gas. Shortly thereafter, they changed to Gulf brand gas and erected the sign, which, though the oil company went out of business in 1985, still stands today.
For people around the lake, that sign has become a landmark. “People tell me all the time that they find their way here by looking for that sign,” laughs Ashley. The marina no longer sells gas, offering only a boat launch and dry boat storage.
“My parents and grandparents built the campground together,” said Craig Goodgame, Ashley’s dad, and owner of the campground. “I was just three when they opened, so, like Ashley, I grew up helping and learning about the business my whole life. It was a great playground. I remember having a good time with the kids who were here at the campground, playing our made-up games of crow and snake.
“When I was a bit older, I used to work all day on the gas island,” he adds. “I’d lather up with suntan oil and lay out on the island until a boat came up for gas. Then when they left, I’d get back to sunning.” He also admits to slipping off while he was supposed to be working, on occasion, to ski with whoever was running a ski boat nearby.
Aerial view on a vintage postcard
In those days, the campground was run by Jean, Craig’s mom, and Ashley’s grandmother, along with Jean’s best friend, Nita Staggs. “Nita and Grand momma did everything that was needed, from pulling out trailers to launching boats. They had an old Willys jeep to pull things in or out,” remembers Ashley. “Everyone thought they were sisters because they were always together. When Nita passed away from cancer in the late `90s, Grand momma ran it alone. She worked seven days a week.”
“Mom was a very, very hard worker,” said Craig. “There used to be a game room and a hot dog hut and an ice cream counter. Then, later, when they sold the hot dog hut, they added an ice cream hut. We still rent kayaks and canoes, but we also used to rent tubes. My mom ran all of that.” These days, the hot dog and ice cream huts are gone, replaced by a picnic area that doubles as an entertainment space that often features live music.
David Burrage has been camping at the General Lee for 54 straight years. He is from Hueytown and camped and fished at the General Lee every summer with his family as a young boy. “I remember my dad would go to work from the camper, and my sister and mom and I would spend our days playing on the lake,” Burrage said. “I brought my own kids here every summer, too. Now that they’re grown, they still come some and bring my grandkids. It’s very family oriented. Everyone watches out for each other.”
Providing a place to make family memories are what Ashley and Scott Morton hope to continue to offer at the General Lee Campground and Marina for many years to come.
And, in case you were wondering, the General Lee is not named after the noted Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The general in this name is Ashley’s great grandfather, Clarence Lee, not a military general, but a man, his family says, who had many of the leadership qualities of a general and ran his world with similar decisiveness.
Pro fishing tips on Logan Martin Lake and Neely Henry Lake with Zeke Gossett
Logan Martin
Logan Martin in the winter can be your best chance to catch the biggest ones in the lake. Last February, I caught my personal best bass on Logan Martin. It was a once of a lifetime fish for Logan Martin, but during these two months, this could easily happen for anyone.
The water temps usually vary this time of year, but here are a few ways I approach to catch fish during this time on Logan Martin. Water temps can vary from as low as 48 degrees to as high as 57 degrees Fahrenheit.
Typically, when you read any article on fishing in the winter, it’s going to include fishing deep most of the time. I’m not saying you cannot catch fish deep on Logan Martin in the winter, but usually, a lot of my bigger fish come out of shallow water – even in the winter – especially if the weather is on a warming trend and the water temps are in around that 55-degree mark.
Cold weather is great for spectacular catches
I’m still going to start around the main river areas. There’s a couple ofthings I look for in order to feel like I’m fishing the most productive waters. First, there must be some type of baitfish in the area. Second, I’m looking for more vertical structure this time of year.
The baitfish change daily on what part of the water column they might be in. Vertical structure allows fish to move up and down easily with them. A couple examples of this might be deeper docks or steep river banks with rock and laydowns.
A few of my favorite bait choices would be a flat-sided crank bait, spinnerbait and jig. I’m going to throw some type of red or crawfish color pattern on the crank bait. This is one of the better baits to use if the water is colder than 60 degrees. The flat-sided crankbait is a great way to get those fish to react in cold water.
If the water has a little stain to it, a spinnerbait can be a killer on warmer days. The spinnerbait works best slow rolling it on the bottom, and I’ll use a 1/2oz spinnerbait with a single Colorado as the blade.
With the jig, it really depends on water color. If it’s dirty, I will flip a black and blue jig. If it is a little clearer water, I’ll stick with the more natural colors, like green pumpkin. A jig is a great way to get really big bites this time of year.
Another way to target fish in these winter months is in the creeks. Same as the main river, I’m looking for baitfish. If I do not see baitfish on my electronics, I usually will not fish in a particular area long.
Bass are heavy on shad this time of year. Their metabolism is slower. That’s why the bass get very fat and lazy. Slow rolling a single swimbait like a Rage Swimmer 3.75-inch is great way to get bit. Another is using a damiki rig, which is just small minnow type bait on a jig head.
Using forward facing sonar helps with this lure. If you don’t have it, you can still catch fish without it. Just make long cast across points in the creeks and slowly bring them back to the boat. Make sure to wear proper clothing and get out there on even those coldest days of the year.
It just might reward you a fish of a lifetime!
Neely Henry
Neely Henry historically is one of the better lakes on the Coosa River for winter time fishing. It is because it is set up really well for winter time fishing.
Neely Henry is full of rip rap banks and vertical bluff walls in certain sections of the lake. This allows bass to really pull up and down with ease according to the weather and water temp.
It also has a lot of docks and flat clay points which are another wintertime hot spot.
On the rip rap, I’ll first reach for a square bill crank bait. I keep colors fairly simple. Either I’ll throw a red or some sort of shad pattern.
Boat positioning is a big key to success with the crankbait as well. I will hug the boat fairly tight and make parallel cast with the bank. This allows me to cover more water efficiently and keep my bait in the strike zone longer.
The next bait would be a jerkbait. A jerkbait can be killer if the water is a little clear. I’ll fish it around clay points and deeper docks in creeks.
Lastly, the jig can probably be one of my favorites for Neely Henry. The reason I like the jig is because I can fish it around a lot of things, such as around rock, docks, or lay down trees.
If the water is below 60 degrees a jig will always be in the back of my mind when fishing Neely Henry. Creeks are some of the places I check first. This really depends on how cold the water is.
Most of the time the creeks can be three to four degrees warmer than the main river. This warmer water will most of the time attract the baitfish, which in turn, the bass will follow.
If the water is up around that 60-degree mark, I’ll focus on the main river, especially if the current is on.
Just fish the conditions whenever you’re on the water this winter. Stay around the baitfish and warmer water, and you will find success on Neely Henry!
Zeke Gossett of Zeke Gossett Fishing grew up on the Coosa River and Logan Martin Lake. He is a former collegiate champion and is now a professional angler on the B.A.S.S. tour circuit and is a fishing guide. Learn more about Zeke at: zekegossettfishing.com.
Story by Roxann Edsall Photos by Richard Rybka, David Smith, Joe Paul Abbott, Mike Callahan and Heath Lollar
If you live on or near Logan Martin Lake or Neely Henry, you know that both offer endless opportunities for breathtaking pictures. Whether you’re shooting a closeup of one of our hundreds of bird species, an awe-inspiring sunrise or yet another breathtaking sunset, we live in a place rich in photographic potential. Getting that perfect picture is an art form.
There are a few local photographers who have taken it a huge leap above for a different perspective. They have received acclaim for their photography in and around the lake and beyond. They are producing comprehensive coverage of sports programs. They are chasing storms to help forecast and cover weather events. They’re bringing smiles to our faces with a different perspective of those amazing sunrises and literal birds-eye views of our local wildlife. And they’re doing it from 400 feet in the air.
Pioneering drone photography
David Smith is a certified pilot and a professional drone operator. Because he was already a pilot, he was among the few who could fly a drone commercially before 2016, when the rules regarding unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were reevaluated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). After that, extensive training was required to be a licensed drone operator, but not to the extent of full pilot certification.
Smith grew up loving radio-controlled planes and had been flying them since he was 15 years old. From RC planes, he graduated to the latest when drones became available beyond their military origins. The first mass-market drone was the DJI Phantom, hitting the market in 2013. “When drones were brand new, I knew I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to take photos and videos.” His DJI Mavic 3 Cine is just one of seven he currently owns.
Until very recently, Smith worked for ESPN’s College GameDay and Baseball Tonight on the Road as a drone videographer. He was the network’s first drone pilot, retiring just this fall. His drone footage added visual interest to the shots of the set and showed crowds of students at the highlighted university. He also shot additional footage around campus that the directors used before going to commercial breaks.
Smith’s impressive resume also includes serving as chief drone pilot for the 2020 World Games held in Birmingham. “It was a truly incredible experience,” says Smith. “My video was seen all over the world. As chief pilot, I was the only one flying live. Other pilots shot extra video to add to the live broadcast.”
That experience ended up leading to being a part of a search and rescue closer to home. On the way home from shooting some early footage for the World Games, he followed some first responders to the area of Logan Martin Dam. He had all his equipment in the car from the day’s work, so he offered to assist the New London Volunteer Fire Department in their search for a missing woman lost while canoeing.
“I put my drone into the area and flew around. I was able to locate her and to let them know where she was and that she was still alive,” Smith said. “The chief was amazed at how quickly she was located with the drone. They didn’t even have to put their rescue boat in the water.”
These days, Smith is enjoying time with his family. “I used to be gone most of football season,” he says smiling. “Now I have time to pursue some other things.” One thing that is bringing him joy is sharing the love of drone flying with his grandson, 11-year-old Calvin. “We fly almost daily. He’s kicking my … well, I can’t keep up with him.” (Editor’s Note: For more on Dave Smith, see sidebar.)
Taking photography to new heights: Mike Callahan
Mike Callahan says fun is what keeps him flying his drone. Every session he has with his drone is the best, he says. “I keep it under 400 feet, but at that height, what you see is from a totally new perspective,” says the Pell City native. He’d been a photographer for many years before deciding to add a drone to his options.
Mike Callahan
His specialty is nature shots like waterfalls, mountains and wildlife. He enjoys taking his DJI Mini3 Pro into the Talladega National Forest and around Logan Martin Lake. One of his favorite shots is an amazing up-close view of an eagle sitting in its nest.
“You have to be careful with drones around wildlife,” Callahan quickly adds. “I was attacked by an Osprey once and lost my drone. Ospreys are very aggressive.”
He takes that cautionary tale to heart in his work these days. There are guidelines for keeping safe and there are hard and fast rules dictated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) specific to drone piloting under their Part 107 certification. Among those very strict requirements is that pilots cannot fly their drones above 400 feet and they cannot fly over people without a special waiver.
While flying, he is also required to always have his drone in his sight.
Flying over open water to capture beautiful sunrises and sunsets is the specialty of Joe Paul Abbott, another of Logan Martin’s drone photographers. His work is seen frequently on the Love Logan Martin Lake Facebook page. He gets up every day at 4:30 to be sure he gets his DJI Mavic Air 2S ready to start shooting from the back deck of his Cropwell home before the sun gets above the horizon. At other times, he’ll take the boat out and have the drone tracking him and grab action shots around the lake using his remote monitor.
A different perspective:Joe Paul Abbott
Joe Paul Abbott and his controller
Abbott picked up photography in the late ‘90s after the birth of his first son with the goal of learning to shoot better family photos. Eventually, he upgraded to digital format, but soon tired of that, too. “I’m a gadget guy,” he admits. “When drones came out, I couldn’t wait. My wife got me my first one.”
He’s been able to use his drone in his work as an independent insurance agent, recalling times when he needed to inspect a house for fire, storm or other damage, but was limited due to an aggressive dog or other challenge. On those occasions, he uses his drone to fly over those challenges.
“When I shoot from my drone, I become 400 feet tall with a wide-angle lens,” Abbott laughs. “You definitely see things up at that height you just don’t see from the ground.” Even local weatherman James Spann is a fan and has aired many of Abbott’s shots on the weather segment of the local news.
Eye on the storm:Heath Lollar
Severe weather is what drove professional storm chaser and drone pilot Heath Lollar into his business. The 2003 Pell City High School graduate was working in graphic design several years after graduation. A customer asked him to work on the design for a truck wrap. They worked together on a couple of jobs for the truck and started talking.
The customer was storm tracker and meteorologist Brett Adair, and the two began sharing their love of all things weather. Adair promised to take him storm chasing, and Lollar has been hooked ever since.
Lollar’s enthusiasm and natural abilities landed him a job as an in-truck videographer and mobile mechanic for Adair’s company, Live Storms Media. He worked with Adair for almost two years before sending a drone into a storm.
“People wondered if drones could handle the winds,” said Lollar. “Turns out, they can. We can take a drone up and look at the wind patterns in the trees. We can tilt it up and time lapse and focus on what the elements of the clouds are doing that we could never see from the ground.” He hasn’t lost a drone to the winds yet, but he knows a pilot who has already lost four drones doing storm work.
Heath pointing out a weather system
Just this year, on Jan. 12, Lollar captured drone video of his first tornado. “We were set up in Old Kingston, Alabama,” recalls Lollar. “That one was an EF3 that ripped an 82-mile path through Selma and Autauga County. It was bad. There were three fatalities where we were, but seven over the path of the storm.” He describes the video he took of trees twisting together and being sucked up into the air. “After we watched it cross the road, it started throwing trees, houses and cars across the field.”
Drones are essential tools for assessing the damage following a storm, but they can also be used to assist in early search and rescue efforts. Drone pilots can help find safe ways for emergency personnel to get to victims. The information that can be gathered during storms from the heights drones can go is invaluable to forecasters in alerting people to what the storm is doing and where it might go next.
Drones also give GPS placement of the storm and play a crucial role in assessing the accurate path the tornado took.
While Lollar enjoys working for the Emmy-nominated team at Live Storms Media, he doesn’t do it for the kudos. He is genuinely concerned for the people who face these storms and wants to do what he can to help.
When he is in town and there is a storm on Logan Martin Lake, where he lives, he immediately sends out his drone to take video to warn lake residents. You can see his posts on Facebook’s Love Logan Martin Lake page.
Lake life is indeed better thanks to our drone photographers who readily share their photographic finesse from 400 feet and below.
