Highways and Bi-ways

Construction has begun on a bypass that should make it alot easier for folks traveling to and from the lake in Spotsylvania County. The Fredericksburg Freelance Star says:

"The new road will provide traffic relief at the T-intersection at Spotsylvania Courthouse, which handles about 20,000 vehicles a day. In 2029, the bypass is projected to carry 48,000 vehicles a day. The first segment is a three-mile, four-lane road that will peel off Courthouse Road (State Route 208) near the Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park and Plantation Forest subdivision. It will go west of the courthouse, crossing Brock Road. It will end 1.5 miles south of Robert E. Lee Drive. The second phase will continue around Post Oak, cross the Ta River and reconnect with Route 208."

But this is a big project that won't see the first phase done until the end of 2008. So, it will probably mean construction headaches for travelers in the short term...good news for Lake Anna travelers in the long term.

So what's in that water anyway?

One of the joys of lake living are the constant reminders that we are merely sharing the space we call home. The woods, the water and the air at Lake Anna are constantly filled with all kinds of fish, fowl and other animals which we love watching each and every time we may cross paths. There have been a number of bear sightings at the Lake in recent years and months...but more on that later. First, I wanted to share one of the best descriptions of Lake Anna's creation and the fish which now populate the lake.

C.C. McCotter has been a fishing guide on Lake Anna since 1992. His website details biological surveys done on the local fish populations and lists an impressive array:

"Here are the original 40 species according to family group; American eel,gizzard shad,threadfin shad,blueback herring,eastern mudminnow,mosquitocfish,white sucker,creek chubsucker,shorthead redhorse,northern hog sucker, chain pickerel,Northern pike, common carp, bluehead chub, river chub, goldenshiner, satinfin shiner, swallowtail shiner, spottail shiner, pirate perch,white catfish, brown catfish, yellow bullhead, channel catfish, margined madtom,bluespotted sunfish, redbreast sunfish, pumpkinseed, warmouth, bluegill, redearsunfish, mud sunfish, largemouth bass, black crappie, yellow perch,walleye,tessellated darter, white perch and striped bass. There are rare,unsubstantiated reports of a smallmouth or two but they are not established in the lake."

And the biggest surprise for me (as an acknowledged and admitted fishing neophyte)...eels?!! In lakes? Apparently it's not all that unusual. Even so, I don't think I'll share that one with the kids.

Can you Say Cabin Fever!!!

Enough of the cold...enough of the single digit temps and wind chills! I can't help but dream of warm breezes and sunny spring days on Lake Anna. Unfortunately, regardless of the groundhog's predictions it seems we have nothing but cold temps ahead for the long-term forecast anyway. But I've found something that might help...

The Fredericksburg Outdoor Show is this weekend at the Fredericksburg Expo and Conference Center. I've never been before but it sounds like a great way to plan for another Lake Anna summer. There's also coverage of the event in the Freelance-Star if you're looking for something fun to do this weekend.