Alabamas first annual:
Lake Guntersville 2 Day Summer Suspension
this year will be Sept 24-26 2010
Location on map: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UT...36628fd3b0f9e9
(If we had a couple pontoon boats we could shuttle people to Goat Island and do it there hassle free).
Most TVA officials on the Lake don't understand that the Islands are "Public Use" and have no overnight restrictions. But we can camp there according to the information I got from calling TVA direct. Some TVA officials will try to harrass Island campers, but they are just trying to get people to leave who will litter and mess things up, the types of people that will mess up the area are also the type that will not know the usage rules of TVA areas. Keep things tidy, keep things clean, and point the official to me or someone else who is familiar with dealing with these gentleman. I may not always be on the Island to talk to them. In fact, invite them up to check things out and walk around to see what we are doing, be cordial, and super polite.
We have one person who has said that they will bring their pontoon to shuttle with, but I will suggest that whomever has the ability, borrow or rent a canoe or kayak. It will be well worth it if you do. You will be unable to see the area without a boat. Site seeing tours may be offered by boat owners, that is up to them how many and how often. The bat caves at dusk are a site to behold, and the entire area is beautiful.
Also, those of you needing shuttle, I ask that you please donate some money to the shuttle operator for taking the time and gas to help us out.
The original proposed area on the map is no longer accessible by a service road, the road is now routed through the campground and blocked at the end, but we can hike in if some choose, it is in close proximity to goat Island, Bat caves, Cliff carvings, and Guntersville Dam.
Goat Island, Bat Caves and the Cliff Carvings are only accessible by boat. This map from "KudzuCraft" shows Lake Guntersville area paddling sites. http://www.kudzucraft.com/misc/map.php
You can paddle down or motor down to the North bank of the Dam and get out to site see around the Dam.
The next Lake Guntersville 2 day Summer suspension will come with changes right out of the box. It will then change to "Lake Guntersville 2 day Spring Suspension" Last weekend in March (can be changed if there are conflicts with other events.).
Some things to note here:
The campground is a short paddle from the Island, those of you who prefer to keep your family close to showers and amenities, you are more than welcome to stay at the campground.
Goat Island is easily accessible, and often times locals will come there during the day to jump off the river side of the Island.
The river side of Goat Island has a very high (70') cliff, exercise extreme caution when on that side of the Island. Especially at night. The water is deep and not likely to hurt you seriously, but it's still not safe to be messing around back there while drinking or at night. There are different cliff heights for the various levels of daredevils.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8tZwAByCAw
Please leave the Island cleaner than when you came. It's imperative that we take care of these areas to preserve the ability to use them in the future. They are very weary about letting people use these areas, and one person doing the wrong thing can mess it up for all of us.
If someone is in dire need of supplies they have forgotten, we have no easy access to a store. It's actually easier to access stores from boat rather than car once on the Island. That's between you and whomever has a motor boat.
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