[indykoch]

I just returned from our houseboat trip to Lake Cumberland. It was beautiful!

We rented a 77' X 16' houseboat with a hot tub with 10 friends. We brought 2 boats with us, one being my Mariah. She towed the whole way and ran like a champ... no problems at all! We took a couple of night cruises to check out the stars - unbelievable! Did a lot of skiing and tubing. It's taking everything I have to type this, I'm so sore (I'm certain the 4 cases of beer, jello shots, beer bongs, etc. have nothing to do with it!!!).

The lake is down 42 feet while they repair the dam, but it really doesn't make any difference. We beached the houseboat, and basically "owned" the cove all weekend. There was a little traffic and a few other houseboats back there, but even the coves are so big it felt like you were all alone. Made for great skiing. Weather was great, Friday had overcast with some sprinkles and Monday morning was a downpour, but the rest was awesome!

Here are a few pics... one is the ramp at Jamestown Marina (ever tried backing a trailer down a decline that's hard to stand on, busy as heck, and probably 500 feet long with a curve in it?!?!), another of our houseboat, our cove, and a couple of "Kontrolled Khaos". I'm waiting on a friend to send me the pictures she took on her camera.

[ShabahZ280]

Looks like a blast Ryan! Glad to hear the lake is still in good shape, there's been so much negative talk about it; Everybody's making it out to be like it's some kind of ghost town with the water levels down. No doubt it's caused a hit to their tourism, but I'm still willing to take mine down there once gas prices drop! I've been really limited this year for out of town trips due to our $4/gallon friend.

Man, that photo of Jamestown's ramp looks quite a bit different than the last time I was there! Did you stick around the Jamestown area?

And if you've got some pics of the other "festivities", feel free to upload them too!

[indykoch]

Glad to hear the lake is still in good shape, there's been so much negative talk about it; Everybody's making it out to be like it's some kind of ghost town with the water levels down.

Honestly, I think it makes things better! Less traffic = less waves. There was still quite a party in Cocktail Cove with a few poor women that seemed to have somehow lost thier tops. The water was very deep everywhere we went and very clean! You could easily see your toes while swimming! The exposed shore also helped with beaching the houseboat. I didn't notice a single detraction from the lower water levels.

Man, that photo of Jamestown's ramp looks quite a bit different than the last time I was there! Did you stick around the Jamestown area?

Yeah, the ramp was obviously extended due to the water levels. We stayed in the general vicinity. Our cove was named Difficulty Cove which took about 45 minutes to get to in the houseboat (I think it's Southeast of the marina). It was best for night cruises because there was a tower with flashing lights up the shore a ways that would act as a beacon for our way home. You could easily get lost out there at night if you didn't know what you were doing.

I'll post the pics soon.

[KSP181]

Ryan, isn't Lake Cumberland great! We were down all last week and will be returning on July 3rd for 4 days. We have a cabin in Burnside. BTW General Burside Island ramp is great. Six lanes, straight and a shuttle. The good thing about Burnside is that you can go to the lake or go up the South Fork into the Daniel Boone National Forest. The DBNF is great. No houses, no roads, no ramps, and litterally no-one else. We go there most of the time and tie up with friends. We might see 1 or 2 boats in a day. Just woods and water, just the way I like it. Next time you make it to Cumberland, let me know, it is my second home.

[LC addict]

I am a life long Lake Cumberland boater...thus the name, lol. Don't let the low water stories scare you away. We actually dock our Mariah at JRM... we are right under that blue roof across from the ramp in these pics. Its a great lake for boating, even at 680 ft. Hopefully the work will be completed on the dam within the next couple of years, but actually I would love to see it stay between 690-700 for the shoreline! We now host the only KY offshore powerboat race which will be June 4-6, it was held in the west end of the lake last year, this year it will be held on the east end around Somerset. And of course, for those who have attended, the party of the year is the Poker run which is held the wknd after Labor Day.

I would post the links to the websites about the events, but being new, not sure if that is allowed.