Loon Pit

[Moveon]

Easy......I was only asking a question.

If the water was so contaminated that the goo would be all over and in your boat...I actually thought you were talking that there was a film or something on the water. Re reading, I'm taking you stirred up the goo, and that was the issue.

And I've fished a few of those in the past, but only because they were close to a buddy that wanted to fish.

I prefer to fish bigger water.

Sorry I asked.

The black goo is coal dust that's on the bottom of the lake. And in the shallow areas if your motor is not trimmed up it can **** up the coal dust into the water intake cooling system. The water at the South end launch ramp is only about 2ft or 3ft deep and when the water level is low it's even more shallower. There is no black goo floating in the water unless you stir it up from the bottom in the very shallow water. Most all the other areas of this pit are 50 ft deep or so. It probably averages 20 ft deep as there is a lot of shallow areas in the pit. It's a total of 210 acres in size. It not very wide across but it's very long and narrow.

If I had a boat with a different front end I would also prefer more open water and larger bodies of water. But my alumnuim boat is like a John Boat and the front is is square and doesn't take to big water with huge waves. The front end of my boat won't slice thought he waves and I get pounded when I hit a big wave at the wrong angle. I made a mistake when I bought my boat back in 1978. But it's great for places like Bluegrass where the water is calm.

I could not fish Bluegrass when it was first opened up as I don't have a four wheel drive vehicle and could not launch my boat on the gravel ramps. But the IDNR improved the ramps and now there are five concrete ramps on four different bodies of water there. The concrete launch ramps are not very steep and if the water level is up high I can't launch my boat there. Sort of like trying to launch a boat at Patoka's Fisherman's Campground Launch ramp when the water level at Patoka Lake is high and up to the top of the ramp and in the lower part of the parking lot. Your vehicle would have to be in the water before the boat will float off the trailer when the ramp is not steep enough and the water level is up high. Now if they had made the launch ramps at a steeper angle it would be nice but they didn't do it that way.

[Moveon]

I just read on another facebook page that the IDNR Conservation Officers found and arrested a couple people for using meth at the launch ramp at Loon Pit in the Bluegrass Fish and Wildlife Area. Hey guy's It's NOT that kind of Wild Life that is suppose to be used for. Wildlife like in ducks, deer, turkeys and eagles. Not wild drunken and drug parties like these guys were having.

I carry a weapon when I got to Bluegrass Fish and Wildlife Area after it gets dark. You never know what's going on over there after it gets dark. Sometimes it may not be exactly safe during the day. If I see a car parked over there and someone is not fishing I'm always suspect as to what they are up to. They could be out hunting on foot or they could be a couple of teens in the back seat making out or worse. So I avoid them and move on. I drive by the area a lot but have not been fishing out there much due to my health and so many people using the facility.

When I first went out there back in 2003 there were not nearly the number of people using the fish and wildlife area. It was relatively uninhabited and wild back then. No boats with gas motors were allowed on the waters out there back then. But the IDNR revised the rules and started allowing gas motors at Idle Speed only out there on the waters. I've noticed that Idle Speed is a relative term to some people out there. So think that Idel Speed is 10 mph or faster. To me Idle Speed is 2 mph or less. IE the lowest setting on the gas throttle on my small gas engine. But I have a 35 HP gas engine on my boat. Others' have larger engines. And a 250 HP Mercury can't idle down as much as I can in my little boat. And some boat drivers just either don't know about the speed limit or more likely than not JUST DON'T CARE about the rules. I wish that IDNR CO's would fine them once in a while to make them obey the rules as we are suppose to. But the CO's can't be out there all the time. But if the CO's are out there in their boat everyone seems to suddenly start obeying the rules. Funny how that works.

I'm glad that the CO's are out there patrolling the place and keeping order out there. Two guys were arrested for using meth out there and hopefully won't be back anytime soon.

Mean while I keep some defensive Flex type 9mm bullets in my carry gun and keep a couple extra magazines of ammo on me when I'm out and about.

I fished the area from around 2003 until about 2015 (went fishing out there one time last year) and have never really had any problems with other people while out there. Well once I had a problem with a big dog that didn't want me launching my boat on the North End of Loon Pit. A Huge Great Dane was playing fetch with his care keeper that day and attacked me when I approached the launch ramp on foot. I wish that I had my 9mm that day sometimes. But the bite was not threatening other than bacterial infection possibility. He drew blood though on my right elbow. He sneaked up behind me and bit me one the right elbow from behind. After that the lady and guy taking the dogs for a swim put them in their SUV and locked them up. I should not have to wait for people and dogs paying fetch on the ramp before I can launch my boat out there. But so many people take their pet dogs out there to play with them and some do it right on the concrete launch ramps. Those ramps are there for the boat owners to use to launch their boats as a 1st priority IMHO. They are not there to park your car on the ramp and fish off the tail gate for hours at a time either.

There have been many times when I was out there just driving around that I've seen people's trucks/vans parked on the concrete launch ramp right in the way so that no one could launch a boat at the ramp without having to get them to move their vehicle. I'm sure I'm not the only boat owner that's irritated when people monopolize the boat launch ramps. Most people launch their boats there and then move their boat trailer and vehicle off the concrete launch ramp and go park it in the parking lot.