Shutterbugs: Brush up Nature Photography at Digital Camera Workshop!
Digital photographers, here’s your chance too sharpen your skills at a nature photography workshop coming to beautiful Lake Barkley State Resort Park on April 17th. Award-winning nature photographer Curt Hart will lead the workshop which begins Saturday at 9a.m. Hart has captured more than 100 species of birds and wildlife with his camera and will share his techniques and expertise with workshop participants during the full-day workshop.
From Lake Barkley State Resort Park:
The program includes classroom instruction, time in the field, critique and editing processes. The fee is $75 and lunch is included. Class size is limited so reserve early for this popular event. Call 1-800-325-1708 to reserve a spot or for more information. This workshop is recommend for DSL camera owners.
The workshop is a perfect excuse to plan a family/friend weekend getaway at Lake Barkley in the heart of far west Kentucky. The park is the largest resort park in Kentucky’s system and the lodge affords a spectacular view of the lake through massive windows. Mid April falls in the thick of spring and is a magical time to be being surrounded by natural beauty and capture the landscape in photos.
Besides the lodge, the park includes cottages, the Windows on the Water Restaurant, a seasonal campground, 18-hole golf course, fitness center with indoor pool, marina, fishing, tennis courts, hiking trails, gift shop, and recreational and nature programming. It’s near Cadiz and the Land Between the Lakes at 3500 State Park Road just off I-24. Exit at Highway 68 and go west toward Cadiz and the park.
For more information contact Nick Edmonds at nick.edmonds@ky.gov or call the lodge at call 1-800-325-1708.
Lake Barkley State Resort Park is geared up and ready for Spring. After Old Man Winter’s especially cantankerous mood, aren’t we all?!
Lake Barkely SRP is throwing out the welcome mat to welcome spring’s arrival in southwestern Kentucky with a celebration of nature and nurture for every member of the family on March 19-21.
This celebration is an ideal time for a weekend getaway to enjoy and celebrate one of the most beautiful spectacles in the world: Springtime in Kentucky.
The celebration begins Friday evening (March 19, 2010) at 6:30 with the “owl prowl.” A guide will lead you to prime owl habitats, allowing participants to listen and learn more about these beautiful birds. The hike is $1 per person but children 5 years and younger prowl free.
Saturday marks the official beginning of a full day of spring. Lake Barkley SRP will continue the spring celebration with an 8 a.m. lap swim at the park’s fitness center. At 9 a.m. the park naturalist will lead a leisurely hike in search of the first signs of spring along the ground, in the trees and other surroundings.
The archery range is open from 1 – 2:30 p.m. with an instructor available for beginners.
Learn tips on attracting birds to your own backyard beginning at 3 p.m. and you’ll even learn how to construct your own recycled hummingbird feeder. Birdwatching and recycling are two things near and dear to my own heart – so kudos to Lake Barkley State Resort Park for this activity.
On Sunday morning, you can join the naturalist for a migratory bird hike.
More About Lake Barkley State Resort Park
Lake Barkley State Resort Park is the largest state resort park in Kentucky and visitors will find that there is something for everyone to do and enjoy. The park features a lodge, cottages, the Windows on the Water Restaurant (an exceptional restaurant – click the link for my own review), a seasonal campground, 18-hole golf course, fitness center with indoor pool, marina, fishing, tennis courts, hiking trails, gift shop, and recreational and nature programming. See? Everything you could hope for!
The park is located at 3500 State Park Road in Cadiz. From I-24, take the Highway 68 exit west toward Cadiz.
For more information about the Spring weekend celebration of other amenities at the park, contact Mary at mary.schmidt@ky.gov or Nick at nick.edmonds@ky.gov.
You can call the lodge at call 1-800-325-1708.
The Kentucky State Park System is composed of 52 state parks plus an interstate park shared with Virginia. The Department of Parks, an agency of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, operates 17 resort parks with lodges — more than any other state! For more information on Kentucky parks, visit http://www.parks.ky.gov/
The beautiful weather we’ve been enjoying the past few days has everyone thinking about grilling out, baseball, and summer fun in the sun. Fortunately, we have plenty of places to choose from here in Kentucky to enjoy all the fun we can handle. Green Turtle Bay in Grand Rivers, Kentucky is a great option. Resorts and Lodges.com didn’t just rank Green Turtle Bay in their Top 10 Kentucky Family Resorts, they ranked them #1.
If you’ve never had the opportunity to visit Green Turtle Bay, watch the video above to get an idea about what you’ve been missing.
As you know, we absolutely love Kentucky Lake, Lake Barkley, Grand Rivers, Aurora, the Willow Pond restaurants and all things that fall under the heading Land Between the Lakes. (Especially when they fall under the heading and answer to the name catfish.)
A while back, I wrote a review about the Aurora Landing Restaurant at Kenlake Lodge. Everything about it was beyond spectacular and I couldn’t wait to share the experience with our readers.
Not long ago, we found ourselves in the area again. When it came time to eat, we nearly drove to Aurora Landing without even discussing it. However, we hadn’t eaten in the beautiful restaurant in the Lake Barkley Lodge – very appropriately named Windows on the Water Restaurant - in a while and we were anxious to visit Lake Barkley Lodge. Besides, variety is the spice of life, right? The windows in this gorgeous restaurant afford you a breathtaking view of Lake Barkley with an endless parade of sailboats and beautiful birds. The restaurant is a real beauty, itself. Windows on the Water is always decorated spectacularly, celebrating whatever season or holiday the calendar shows.
Naturally, if the food or service didn’t back up the beautiful surroundings, this would be a short review… something to the tune of, “Go, take a look around, then go eat somewhere else.” Fortunately, I won’t have to say anything like that because the food was out of this world and the server couldn’t have treated us any better if we were her family.
I actually ventured away from my beloved catfish to try something new: a Kentucky Hot Brown. Here’s how it was described in the menu: Toast points with baked country ham, roasted turkey, smothered in cheese sauce, topped with tomato, bacon and cheddar cheese. Baked until steaming hot…
Here’s how I personally describe this Kentucky Hot Brown: Good, gracious God in Heaven, when’s the soonest I can have a Kentucky Hot Brown from the Windows on the Water Restaurant again?!?! My dear reader friend, I am at a loss for words here. This was one of the most remarkable dishes I’ve ever enjoyed – it was spectacular. When I took my first bite, I was stupified. My husband saw the stupification and simply (without saying a word) visited my plate with his fork…. His and Her stupification!
I’d tell you what Michael ordered, but I can’t for the life of me recall. All I remember is the delicious bread, the perfect sweet tea, the outstanding onion rings and the Kentucky Hot Brown that I’ve been fantasizing about since.
The next time you’re around the Land Between the Lakes, promise me you’ll eat at the Windows on the Water Restaurant. Oh, scratch that… don’t wait for the next time you’re in the area – just go! Kentucky State Parks.gov has all the information you’ll need about the Lake Barkley Lodge and I have all the information you’ll need about the Windows on the Water Restaurant… 20 stupifying stars out of 10.
I still can’t believe what a beautiful day it was in Grand Rivers, Kentucky on Marina Day. Enjoy the pictures and highlights of Grand River’s Marina Day 2009.
Green Turtle Bay is, without a doubt, one of the most beautifully scenic places you could ever hope to be.
Friendly people, too!
Lake Barkley is, without a doubt, one of Kentucky’s crown jewels. If you want to see a Kentuckian sit a little taller, just mention Lake Barkley. Like UK Basketball, Mammoth Cave, and Kentucky Lake – we’re understandably proud.
Below are some bits and pieces of Lake Barkley trivia that you might not have known.
- Lake Barkley has 57,900 acres of water and 1,004 miles of shoreline.
- Lake Barkley was named for the 35th Vice-President, Alben Barkley.
Prior to the Vice Presidency, Barkley served in the U. S. Senate from Kentucky for over twenty years. Alben Barkley was born in a log cabin near Lowes, Graves County, Kentucky. He worked his way through college as a janitor. After passing the bar, he practiced law in Paducah, Kentucky. - Alben Barkley coined the term “Give ‘em hell, Harry” as President Truman was leaving Washington on his “whistle-stop” train across the country. Barkley was popularly known as “the Veep” thanks to his young grandson, Stephen M. Truitt. Stephen preferred the shortened name to “Mr. Vice President.” When Alben Barkley told the press about his grandson’s phrasing, the newspapers printed it, and the title stuck. Alben Barkley’s successor as vice president, Richard Nixon, declined the nickname, saying that it had been bestowed on Barkley affectionately and, therefore, belonged to him. However, the term didn’t die, and it’s used to this day.
- Construction of Barkley Dam began in 1959 on the Cumberland River.
- Lake Barkley’s Maximum depth is 68 feet.
- Lake Barkley’s Minimum depth is 12 feet.
- Lake Barkley is known for its Stripers as well as its Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass. Other fish in Lake Barkley include Crappie (Black and White), Redear Sunfish, Sauger, Blue Catfish, Channel Catfish, Striped Bass, and White Bass.
For more information about Lake Barkley:
Download Lake Barkley Vacation Guide (PDF)
The Village Between the Lakes (Grand Rivers)
Green Turtle Bay (Resort and Marina on Lake Barkley)
