Originally Posted by
redearhoosier
As an avid Hoosier fisherman, I would like to see the state build a unique lake in Southern Indiana. The typical Southern Indiana fisherman doesn't have a lot of GOOD options when it comes to catching crappie, bluegill or redear. It's easy to argue that point and say that Patoka, the Forestry Lakes, Dogwood, Hardy etc., offer good fishing but that's not really a true statement anymore.
I originally wanted to see one or two nice size lakes opened up in the Army Ammunition Plant near Charlestown. There's thousands of acres in the plant and the state could easily open up a couple of 500 acre lakes to provide recreation for the ever growing Falls City Area of Jeffersonville, Clarksville and New Albany. This would be a nice plan and it's long overdue IMO.
What recently popped onto my radar is something even bigger than the above...by a longshot. The Jefferson Proving Grounds in Madison is actually five or six times bigger acreage wise than the old powder plant is. The state could put in a lake that would surpass Monroe or Patoka in terms of size and potential.
I personally know dozens of AVID fisherman who choose to take their hard earned money and spend it in other states. Kentucky gets the biggest benefit from Hoosier anglers and so does Mississippi and Alabama. I would be very curious to know how much money Hoosier families and anglers spend on those trips to Barkley, Kentucky Lake, Weiss Lake or any of the four big ones in Mississippi...not to mention Table Rock or other places.
Me and my family will spend about 3 grand this year on the three seperate trips to Barkley Lake. It's about time the state of Indiana gives us our Barkley, even if it's only 20,000 acres instead of 50,000 acres. There's plenty of room in the Proving Grounds to build a sizeable lake that would really BOOST the local economies.
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