Elk & Bison Prairie | Genuine Kentucky

The Elk and Bison Prairie: Winter Is a Wonderful Time to Visit

February 3, 2017 by Joi Sigers 1 Comment

Elk in the Elk and Bison Prairie January 2017

As I said in a previous post, there is no bad time to visit the Elk and Bison Prairie in the Land Between the Lakes. While you automatically think of Spring and Summer as wonderful times to visit (and they are!), winter and autumn are also perfect opportunities to see wildlife, as these pictures prove.

You are often able to get SO close to the elk and bison – affording you beautiful pictures and, more importantly, memories that’ll last a lifetime.

Just be sure you put your camera or iPhone down every now and then and simply enjoy the beauty and peacefulness of this one-of-a-kind place.

The past few (read: 6-8) times we’ve been to the Elk & Bison Prairie, the credit card machine at the gate has been broken – so be sure to have $5 with you in cash. It’s just $5 per car and you can drive around the prairie as often as you like.

Click through the gallery below for more Elk & Bison Prairie Pictures. Of course, to TRULY appreciate this amazing prairie and its gorgeous residents, plan a visit to the Land Between the Lakes and Elk & Bison Prairie as soon as possible.

These animals are just amazing. The Elk on this visit just seemed to pose for me. See the big guy in the last picture in the gallery below? He had been giving me all kinds of great pictures looking forward, then all of a sudden he struck a “profile” pose and I snapped away.

A photographer loves it when their models work it!

Elk and Bison Prairie in the Land Between the Lakes

Land Between the Lakes: Fees Waived in Honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

December 29, 2015 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

Elk in the Elk & Bison Prairie, LBLIf I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a billion times, it’s always the right time to visit the Elk & Bison Prairie in the Land Between the Lakes. Now we’re little over a few weeks away from possibly the “rightest” right time.

Members of the public who want to visit the Elk & Bison Prairie (or get a horseback riding day-use permit at Wranglers Campground) can do so for free in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day on Monday, January 18, at Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area.

“Experience hiking, biking, wildlife viewing, picnicking, and scenic driving in the great outdoors with your family and friends,” said Jeff Laird, Customer Service Manager at Land Between The Lakes. “We encourage visitors to come out and enjoy numerous free outdoor recreation opportunities year round.”

The Forest Service is participating in the fee waiver day along with the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Bureau of Reclamation. Be on the lookout for other fee waiver days and weekends throughout 2016 at www.landbetweenthelakes.us/visit/rates-hours/ under “Forest Service Fee Free Days.”

Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area manages more than 170,000 acres in western Kentucky and Tennessee as part of the U.S. Forest Service and the Department of Agriculture’s public lands program. Land Between The Lakes offers outdoor recreation, lake access, land management, and environmental education to over 1.4 million visitors annually. The Friends of Land Between The Lakes works in partnership with the Forest Service providing program services, funds development, and volunteer support.

To find more information about Land Between The Lakes, log on to the official website at www.landbetweenthelakes.us or call toll-free at 1-800-LBL-7077 or local at 270-924-2000.

Don’t think for one second that cooler weather makes a trip to the Land Between the Lakes or the Elk & Bison Prairie any less fun or memorable. You can actually see the wildlife in the prairie more easily, thanks to less leaves and grass in your way. The same holds true for birding – you’ll find bird watching (and certainly photographing) easier than ever.

Just bundle up!

New Elk & Bison Prairie Pictures Added

May 4, 2015 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

Elk Passing in Front of Our Car

Another weekend, another trip to the Land Between the Lakes for me and Michael. Saturday, while in the Land Between the Lakes, I overheard a few workers talking about their commutes and I couldn’t help but think, “I bet we’re here almost as much as y’all!”

This part of Kentucky is just off the charts beautiful and provides endless fun with a million and one things to do. What with Kentucky Lake, Lake Barkley, three of the best Kentucky State Resort Parks, The Hitching Post, and the Land Between the Lakes ALL within a short drive of one another… who can blame us for being regulars?

Naturally we spent time in the Elk & Bison Prairie – one of my favorite places anywhere. We normally hit the prairie around suppertime, but we were early Saturday. Fortunately, there were still plenty of wildlife to photograph and enjoy.

At one point, we were watching a turkey scratch and roll in the dirt – then, as we slowly began to drive off, he acted like he was racing the car. You haven’t seen cute until you’ve seen a turkey run!

A few bison were near one watering hole and a group of elk were enjoying a beautiful afternoon in the shade.

Whenever you go, always be sure to check around the watering holes – there are several and the animals frequent them regularly, especially in the warmer weather.

See the newest pictures as well as past pictures in the Elk & Bison Prairie Photo Album on Genuine Kentucky.

Bison at the Elk & Bison Prairie, Land Between the Lakes

Bison Babies at the Elk & Bison Prairie

April 24, 2015 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

Picture of Bison from one of our trips to the Elk & Bison Prairie last year.

The sound you just heard was me falling out of my computer chair. I couldn’t help myself, one look at a couple of pictures of bison babies and I passed out from happiness.

I’m pretty much obsessed with all animals, but bison are like cats (big and small), elk, pigs, polar bears, and possums – they have very special places in my heart.

I clicked through a Land Between the Lakes Newsletter this morning and saw an article about Bison Babies Arriving at the Elk & Bison Prairie and I immediately saw two pictures that were my undoing. Two words: Baby bison.

Brace yourself…. click the link… and hang on.

*** The picture above is not one of the pictures of this year’s baby bison. This one was taken on one of our trips last year. “Last year…” if that’s not a hint for my husband that it’s time for another trip I don’t know what is.

Kentucky Pictures of the Day Starring Beautiful Elk from the Elk & Bison Prairie

May 21, 2014 by Joi Sigers Leave a Comment

We recently spent a beautiful day in one of the greatest places on earth – Kentucky’s Land Between the Lakes. We visited all three state parks in the area (Lake Barkley, Kentucky Dam Village, and Kenlake) and had a wonderful supper at the Willow Pond in Aurora.

Although we didn’t make it to The Homeplace or Woodland’s Nature Station (a few of our other favorite stops) on this particular trip, we did spend a great deal of time in the Elk & Bison Prairie.

Like I’ve said before, I never want to leave the prairie and this time was no exception.

For just $5 a vehicle, you can ride around the prairie as many times as you want (until they close, of course) and riding around frequently and slowly is the key to seeing as many of the residents as possible. Another tip of the trade – we tend to have the best luck in the late afternoon hours to early evening.

We normally see a lot more bison than elk but, on this particular trip we saw A LOT more elk than bison. A LOT more. Seriously, these beauties were practically everywhere we looked.

In a few pictures, I tried to include our vehicle’s rear view mirror in the shot so you could get an idea of just how close you can often get to these amazing animals.

We also saw a great number of turkeys this trip and I even saw an eagle – which elicited such a squeal from me it’s a wonder the elk didn’t run and hide. As luck would have it, my camera was “down” when I spied the gorgeous eagle soaring above our car but it was just as well. Since I didn’t have to worry about photographing him (her?), I had time to just simply take it all in and thank God for making such a beautiful world.

And I did just that.

I’ll post more pictures of the prairie, and the turkeys (of course!) tomorrow. I promised the elk this post would be all about them and I have no intention of breaking my promise. Can you imagine the bad karma in that?

Enjoy the pictures and, better still, plan a trip to the Land Between the Lakes and the Elk & Bison Prairie S-O-O-N!