Bluegrass South Ramp

[jkelley1487]

I saw a guy pop a tire on it today. There is a hole on the south bluegrass ramp. It's on the south part of the ramp... Just a heads up to everyone. I'll call the DNR Monday to report it.

[Moveon]

I saw a guy pop a tire on it today. There is a hole on the south bluegrass ramp. It's on the south part of the ramp... Just a heads up to everyone. I'll call the DNR Monday to report it.

That big hole at the bottom of the ramp has been a huge problem ever since the State started allowing gas motors on Bluegrass Pit. The holes are created when guys power up their boat the last few inches using those big gas motors. The Prop wash washes the dirt away and make the holes. It's been a huge problem throughout the state's lakes with concrete launch ramps that don't go way down into the water.

Guys that have the v front type bass boats and the little rubber bumper on their trailer have a hard time getting the boat lined up straight on the boat trailer. They need to learn how to position the trailer at the right depth so that they can ease up the boat onto the trailer and tied the boat up without it not making it all the way up. Some times if you put the boat trailer down too far/deep on the ramp the boat won't sit right on the boat trailer.

I've seen some guys throw a rooster tail out the back of the motor trying to get their big boat back on the trailer several times. They have the boat trailer too deep in the water and therefore the nose of the boat won't fit into the boat trailer right. There is a video on this site that was posted recently about how to properly launch and recover their boat.

As for the hole. The IDNR has a trailer that they haul around the state to different launch ramps. They attached a blade (think back hoe or bulldozer type blade) that they use to push rock down the launch ramp and into the holes. They haul rock in the flat bed trailer and then dump the rock out onto the ramp and the back the trailer with the push blade down the ramp and use the blade to push the gravel down the ramp and into the hole.

The problem is that the water is so low that the end of the ramp is exposed this time of the year. The holes at the end of the ramp has been there for a while but people don't have to deal with it when the water level is higher.

They fill the hole in and in a few days the boats wash the gravel back out of the holes again. It's a continual problem.

This problem will persist as long as people use gasoline powered engines on these small lakes.

I said it before and I'll say it again. We have way too many people using this facility and this is what happens when you put so many boats on a small lake like Bluegrass.

And with Loon Pit's North Concrete Launch Ramp out of action for the same problem it has forced even more boats onto Bluegrass pit.

I really don't see any way to fix this problem other than to ban gas powered boats or to some how rebuild the concrete launch ramp so that the end of the ramp extends further into the lake and into deeper water. But I don't think that can be done without building a coffer type dam where one could work inside without the water there. Or draining the lakes to expose the shoreline more and then refill the lake after the launch ramp concrete is poured. But they didn't really make the concrete launch ramps that way. They had precast slabs of concrete that were attached together on site and then pushed into the water one at a time. That's part of the problem too. They didn't get enough of the concrete sections deep into the lake where the prop's can't wash out the dirt at the end of the ramp.

I broke my boat trailer's axel at the Bluegrass Launch Ramp back around 2006. My axel broke right in the middle while I pulled the boat out of the water after the wheels went into the hole. The boat trailer was 30 years old so it was a matter of time. But I didn't know the axel was broken until I got down to the St John's Road and Boonville New Harmony Road intersection. Some guys sitting at the stop sign there waved me down and told me that my wheels were smoking. The wheels were tilted inwards at the top of the wheel and rubbing against the fender and wheel wells. I had to life the boat up off the trailer and tie a strap between the boat trailer and the axel to make it back home. I hurt my back that night trying to life the heavy boat up about 4" of the top of the trailer in order to get the strap in the gap. Three of us were lifting the boat up. I didn't know how bad I hurt my back until I got home and it started really hurting. The next morning I could not straighten up and was left bent over for a few minutes. I must have compressed a disk in my back and it was pinching a nerve. I got some muscle relaxers from the doctor and it finally resolved. But to this day if I stand in one place for too long I get a burning sensation on the front of my left thigh. The nerves are still slightly pinched in my lower back from that incident.

So I won't go fishing at Bluegrass Pit when the water is this low as I know that the hole is still there. I have a brand new axel on my boat trailer as I had that fixed right after it happened.

I had a guy cut off the wheels and bearings from my old damage axel and he made up a new axel and welded the old bearing/wheels onto the new axel and put that new axel on my boat. The new setup works great.

[SteveM4A1]

Guys that have the v front type bass boats and the little rubber bumper on their trailer have a hard time getting the boat lined up straight on the boat trailer. They need to learn how to position the trailer at the right depth so that they can ease up the boat onto the trailer and tied the boat up without it not making it all the way up. Some times if you put the boat trailer down too far/deep on the ramp the boat won't sit right on the boat trailer.

I've seen some guys throw a rooster tail out the back of the motor trying to get their big boat back on the trailer several times. They have the boat trailer too deep in the water and therefore the nose of the boat won't fit into the boat trailer right. There is a video on this site that was posted recently about how to properly launch and recover their boat.

I throw a rooster tail regularly when power loading. Trimming up does a couple things: one, it pushes the bow up further to clear the bow roller easier, which allows for less power needed to get the bow eye to the bow roller. Secondly, it keeps my prop from hitting anything, such as the idiots who throw rocks onto the ramp. Furthermore, you should be happy and smiling when you see us rooster-tail powerloaders, since there is no prop wash blowing out those crappy ramps. Maybe they should fix the ramps so this doesn't happen.

There are lots of correct ways to launch and trailer a boat depending upon the ramp and the circumstances.

[Moveon]

I throw a rooster tail regularly when power loading. Trimming up does a couple things: one, it pushes the bow up further to clear the bow roller easier, which allows for less power needed to get the bow eye to the bow roller. Secondly, it keeps my prop from hitting anything, such as the idiots who throw rocks onto the ramp. Furthermore, you should be happy and smiling when you see us rooster-tail powerloaders, since there is no prop wash blowing out those crappy ramps. Maybe they should fix the ramps so this doesn't happen.

There are lots of correct ways to launch and trailer a boat depending upon the ramp and the circumstances.

Would it not be much easier to just position the boat trailer at the right depth so that the front of the boat glides into the stop on the trailer properly.

Trimming up makes good sense in that it protects the prop from those rocks.

Guys that go out in their boats a lot are much better and getting their boat onto the boat trailer than others. The more you practice and figure out the easy way to get the boat back on the trailer the better off everyone else will be.

Another reason for the hole is not just the low water. But there are many more people using these facilities.

And yes you are right. The facilities could use some repair and could be made better. But unfortunately these little Pits are not getting the money from the State to do such projects. I read where a bunch of money was being spent up North on a new Gun Range. Willow Slough I think IIRC.

I saw how they made the launch ramp we are talking about. The concrete ramp as the South end of Bluegrass. They had the concrete slabs on dry land and then pushed them into the water with a bull dozer. That was way back around 2003 or 2004.

Recently they also redid the culvert that runs under the road there at Boonville New Harmony Rd and Bluegrass Pit's Parking lot. Before they reworked the ditch going to that culvert the water was pretty high in Bluegrass Pit and we didn't have to worry about the hole at the end of the concrete.

I personally wish that the IDNR and the GOVERNOR/legislature would fund the construction of better concrete launch ramps in our area. IE Bluegrass F&W and Sugar Ridge. But we all know that he money is not coming down here like it should.

If anyone has spent a few hours at the launch ramp knows there are a lot of boats that don't make it up on the trailer the first time they try. They have to put the motor in reverse and back up and try it again. And if they don't position the trailer properly in the water the boat will slide back down before they can get the safety chain and wench rope on the front hook of the boat.

Did you see the video that was posted in here just last week. That video was pretty good and well done and got me to thinking about the launch ramp and how people recover their boats.

I'm pretty lucky in that my boat is very easy to recover and goes up on the trailer and stops in the right spot almost every time. Now there have been a few times where I got the boat a little crooked and had to back off the trailer using reverse but those times are far and few between. And my boat stops right where it's suppose to where I can turn off the motor and walk up to the front of the boat and reach the wench rope and attach it to the front of my boat.

I wonder how much it would cost to rebuild the launch ramp again? Or to add more concrete to the end so that the hole would be further out in the water and in deeper water. That would help solve the problem maybe

But until the IDNR can fix the root cause of the problem they will just have to continue to try to fill in the hole with gravel and rocks to stabilize the hole and keep it from being washed out again.

Now I understand why IDNR in the past didn't allow big motors on these small lakes. I was happy when IDNR lifted the restrictions and allowed us to use gasoline motors on the lakes at bluegrass F &W area. I had a hard time getting the boat back up on the trailer just using the trolling motor and ropes. It's so much easier now to just run the boat up on the trailer with the gas motor.

I remember when there was a 10 HP motor size restriction on most all the smaller lakes in IN. I wanted to go fishing at Hovey's back in it's hay days when the drain was still wide open and people talked about huge crappies being caught there. But the motor size restriction kept me off that lake. My motor was too big to allow me to use that facility.

[SteveM4A1]

Would it not be much easier to just position the boat trailer at the right depth so that the front of the boat glides into the stop on the trailer properly.

Trimming up makes good sense in that it protects the prop from those rocks.

Guys that go out in their boats a lot are much better and getting their boat onto the boat trailer than others. The more you practice and figure out the easy way to get the boat back on the trailer the better off everyone else will be.

The trailer is at the right depth. You see, some bass boats cannot just "glide" up to the bow roller, unless the trailer is too far in the water. If the trailer is too far in the water, the boat can then ride over the bunks, onto the fenders, etc., when you pull the boat out of the water. That isn't fun. I have had boats that I didn't need to power load on certain ramps, because I could get the bow eye to the bow roller without it. Every boat isn't the same, and neither is every ramp. Power loading is a perfectly acceptable method of trailering a boat, and if someone does it differently than you, there is probably a reason to it. They probably know their boat better than you do and the best methods to handle it.

In my mind, the issue isn't with the individuals power loading, but with the crappy facilities that we all pay for.

[Moveon]

The trailer is at the right depth. You see, some bass boats cannot just "glide" up to the bow roller, unless the trailer is too far in the water. If the trailer is too far in the water, the boat can then ride over the bunks, onto the fenders, etc., when you pull the boat out of the water. That isn't fun. I have had boats that I didn't need to power load on certain ramps, because I could get the bow eye to the bow roller without it. Every boat isn't the same, and neither is every ramp. Power loading is a perfectly acceptable method of trailering a boat, and if someone does it differently than you, there is probably a reason to it. They probably know their boat better than you do and the best methods to handle it.

In my mind, the issue isn't with the individuals power loading, but with the crappy facilities that we all pay for.

Don't hold your breath in getting those crappy facilities fixed anytime soon. Other than them trying to fill in the hole at the end of the concrete with gravel.

Maybe the beavers will block up the culvert and if it rains the water level will rise and this won't be such a problem.

I'm tempted to just drive over there and see how many boats are having trouble recovering onto their trailers. Cheap intertainment IMHO. It's always fun to watch the husband and wife team trying to launch the boat with the wife driving the truck/boat trailer for the first time. He's looking at the back of the boat trailer and telling her to go left which is her right. And She is looking at him from the top of the ramp and her right is his left. That's aways worth a good chuckle.

I guess even if the facilities are crappy we still have to use them or go elsewhere as they are not going to get it fixed right without more money from the State. If it were not for places like Bluegrass I'd have to fish the Ohio River or KY lake and drive 4 hours to get there.

[Moveon]

I drove over there yesterday and watched one guy launch his boat at the South Ramp at Bluegrass Pit. He didnt' seem to have any problems pulling his EMPTY trailer back out of the water. Water level is way down now. I wonder if he had his boat on the trailer when he tried to pull out of the water on that ramp if it would have made a big difference. I didn't see anyone else launching at that time of the day. I did note about 3 to 4 boat trailers in the parking lot. So other boats were out there fishing somewhere.

I asked the IDNR guy at the area if they were going to fix the launch ramp at Loon Pit. He was sitting in the parking lot at Loon this day. There were only about three or four other vehicles in the parking lot. The ramp is still blocked off with a rope or chain across the launch ramp. One car was parking right on the ramp or across the mouth of the ramp. No problem I guess since the ramp is closed. And the other was parked in the unmarked handicapped parking spot. There were a few people fishing from the bank on the side opposite of the ramp. I didn't see anyone fishing on the ramp but I was only there for a short time.

The IDNR guy said he had NOT heard anything about fixing the ramp.

Has anyone called up there to Sugar Ridge and asked to talk to the Property Manager and find out if and when they are going to fix the hole at the end of the concrete launch ramps and open the launch ramp at Loon Pit back up? The one at the North end of Loon Pit.

We pay for fishing license and extra taxes on our fishing gear and boat and that money needs to be used more wisely. I saw where the IDNR installed a new dock at another State Facility up North somewhere. When will the money start flowing down South?

[jkelley1487]

Used the ramp of Saturday morning and it was fine. I think it was because of the significant water drop that led to people falling off the back of the ramp. The lake fishes a lot differently now that is about 6 feet lower. I miss not being able to flip a lot of the shallow brush and trees.

We had a good day Saturday, catching over 10 bass and 3 keepers (3.7 lbs, 4.10 lbs, 4.13 lbs) which we always put back. The fish were pretty scattered and we got bit deep, shallow, and in between. The water is down to 78 degrees and definitely starting to move the bass to a fall pattern. It was a lot of fun and I see almost everyone catching catch and release out there that is bass fishing, which is pretty awesome.

[Moveon]

I drove out to Bluegrass Fish and Wildlife Area and checked out all the different ramps last week after going up to Suger Ridge first. I noticed that the Loon Pit was closed again at the North End where they build the concrete launch ramp. The South end doesn't have a real launch ramp just a bit of gravel next to the parking lot that you can launch a small boat on.

The North End of Bluegrass Pit was also closed. The South end of Bluegrass Pit has not been closed from what I've seen. But back in or around 2006 my boat trailer got a broken axle after pulling my boat out of the water at the South End of Bluegrass Pit. And that year the water was low like it is now. When the water gets low the end of the ramp is closer to the shoreline and it's easier to have your trailer wheels drop off the end of the concrete. They poured concrete slabs on the shoreline and or used some precast concrete slabs and pushed them into the water one by one with a dozer when they made the concrete launch ramp at the South End of Bluegrass Pit. I guess they did the same thing with the other concrete launch ramps out there. The culvert that runs under Boonville New Harmony Road and that connected Bluegrass Pit's South end to the North end of Loon Pit has been clogged up. I'm not sure what clogged it up over the years. My guess was the beavers hearing running water instinctively hauled sticks and mud to the culver and plugged it up to raise the water level in Bluegrass Pit. I noticed a lot more of the young trees along the shoreline at the South end of Bluegrass Pit were cut down by the beavers. This made for some good shoreline fishing and new cover for the fish and food for the beavers. The beavers have been in this pit ever since I first stated fishing Bluegrass Pit back in 2003 after the IDNR put in the new concrete boat launch ramps. I would not risk launching my old boat with a 2 wheel drive truck when the ramps were made out of gravel only. So I only started fishing Bluegrass after they built the concrete launch ramps at Bluegrass, Loon and Otter Pits. I've actually seen the beavers swimming in the H section of the South End of Bluegrass Pit one evening back when it was trolling motors only. The trolling motor didn't scare them like a gas motor and they were swimming in the water about 40 yards from my boat. I was done fishing for the day and it was getting dark and I was heading back to the launch ramp from the H part of the Pit. Two beavers were observed and they did the dive and tail slap on the waters surface when I got closer to them. They can swim pretty fast compared to my boat with the trolling motor only. .

Well I'm going to go back and watch TV and see what happened in Charlotte, NC tonight. Hopefully the National Guard will setting these protestors down tonight and stop the carnage. Last night I was upset with what I was seeing. People attacking the news people and the police and one civilian getting shot and killed. Not good. Why don't they just go fishing instead?

Used the ramp of Saturday morning and it was fine. I think it was because of the significant water drop that led to people falling off the back of the ramp. The lake fishes a lot differently now that is about 6 feet lower. I miss not being able to flip a lot of the shallow brush and trees.

We had a good day Saturday, catching over 10 bass and 3 keepers (3.7 lbs, 4.10 lbs, 4.13 lbs) which we always put back. The fish were pretty scattered and we got bit deep, shallow, and in between. The water is down to 78 degrees and definitely starting to move the bass to a fall pattern. It was a lot of fun and I see almost everyone catching catch and release out there that is bass fishing, which is pretty awesome.