The Land Between the Lakes (LBL) is a true recreational treasure.
The 171,280-acre national recreational area in western Kentucky and Tennessee is unique in many ways, as it straddles Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, two of the region’s largest reservoirs, and offers visitors a full spectrum of outdoor activities in one of the largest blocks of undeveloped forest in the eastern United States.
The 40-mile long peninsula, which is 80 percent forested, was designated a national recreational area by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, and the new area’s facilities were built, and initially managed, by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
In 1991 LBL became a UNESCO Biosphere reserve and seven years later the USDA Forest Service took over as the managing agency for LBL, to protect it from commercial development.
Lake access provides idyllic settings for camping, picnicking, hiking, fishing, boating, wildlife viewing, and water sports. LBL is open to hunting in the spring for wild turkey, and in the fall for white-tailed deer, wild turkey, squirrel and other small game.
Special areas and facilities include: Woodlands Nature Station, Elk & Bison Prairie, Homeplace 1850s Working Farm, and Golden Pond Planetarium and Observatory.
Over 500 miles of trails are managed for hiking, biking, off-road riding, and horseback riding. A horse camp also stays open all year.
Innovative resource management draws 240 different species of birds each year. A festival celebrates the hummingbird migration in August and boats take visitors in search of eagles in the winter months.
Cover crops, timber management, and dedicated nature preserves, create food and habitat for wildlife and offer visitors good wildlife viewing opportunities on foot, or from vehicles on scenic drives.
LBL By the Numbers
1.5 million visitors annually
4 nearby state parks
5 environmental education facilities
14 backcountry camping areas (along trails)
26 boat ramps
70 miles of mountain bike trail
100 miles off-road vehicle trail (Turkey Bay ORV Area)
106 miles of horse trail
190 acres of wildlife refuge
261 miles of hiking trail
300 miles of undeveloped shoreline
444 miles of scenic roadways
1427 total number of campsites
New Book Details LBL’s Amphibians and Reptiles
The hardwood forests, wetlands, lakeshores, and open lands of LBL provide diverse habitats for the region’s herpetofauna.
Readers can get the most up-to-date information from Amphibians and Reptiles of Land Between the Lakes (ISBN 978-0-8131-6767-1), published by University Press of Kentucky, and authored by David H. Snyder, A. Floyd Scott, Edmund J. Zimmerer, and David F. Frymire.
For more outdoors news and information, see Art Lander’s Outdoors on KyForward.
This definitive reference guide was released on Sept. 16, 2016. It will help visitors identify, and hopefully gain more respect and appreciation for the region’s amphibians and reptiles, which co-author Scott wrote in the preface, “though often maligned, are an integral part of the web of life, serving as both predator and prey.”
Readers can learn about the salamanders, frogs, toads, turtles, lizards and snakes found in LBL, and the wider ecosystem of western and central Kentucky and Tennessee. Some of the species profiled in the book are native only to this region of the U.S.
Species profiles include: description, distribution, habitat, natural history and conservation status, with stunning color photographs of each species.
The reference guide also includes an identification key, an appendix of families, genera and species, glossary, suggested references, and index of species.
The 103-page, 6 by 9-inch book, has one map, 92 color photographs, five tables, and six black and white illustrations.
The paperback version sells for $24.95. Buy online at: http://www.kentuckypress.com/.
Art Lander Jr. is outdoors editor for NKyTribune and KyForward. He is a native Kentuckian, a graduate of Western Kentucky University and a life-long hunter, angler, gardener and nature enthusiast. He has worked as a newspaper columnist, magazine journalist and author and is a former staff writer for Kentucky Afield Magazine, editor of the annual Kentucky Hunting & Trapping Guide and Kentucky Spring Hunting Guide, and co-writer of the Kentucky Afield Outdoors newspaper column.