New Year's Laurel River Lake

 1/1 - 1/2/23

Laurel River Lake

Nice weather, my wife suggested that I spend the night in the woods. I planned on going one place and when I got to the trailhead there were about 10 cars. I wasn't interested in camping near a bunch of people and I figured that at least some of those people were going to be where I was planning on staying. So, I decided to head to Laurel River Lake. I knew I'd be able to see the sunset/sunrise and the lake is always pretty.

all cell phone pics

I walked along the lakeshore for a bit and found a place to setup camp.

Looks like there is some potential for a nice sunset

It started out nicely ...

... and kept going

Then the stars started to come out

Orion coming up in the east

Venus?

Cloudy morning, no sunrise

A short trip, but a nice way to start the new year

Laurel River Lake and Kid #3

Laurel River Lake
Craigs Creek Boat Ramp
7/25 - 7/26/19 (1 night)
2019 Bag Nights: 10

The older two kids were still in camp and my wife had a short work trip, so kid #3 and I went on a short kayaking excursion to Laurel River Lake in Southern Kentucky. The weather was perfect, warm enough to swim, but not crazy hot as we were paddling.

Once we got to the White Oak Boat-in Campground, we sent up and then played in the water and watched the power boats go by.

There is a bit of a beach, but the lake level was really high, so the beach was pretty small. She still had fun digging and splashing.

There was an attempt at skipping rocks, she needs some practice.

Then we had dinner and waited for the stars to come out. We saw Jupiter and Saturn and a couple fireflies and a couple bats.

Next morning, we packed up and then paddled back towards the boat ramp, had a nice day and got home before mom. Super fun trip, we both agreed that next time we need to go for at least 2 nights.

Dad and son go paddling

Laurel River Lake
10/6 - 10/7/18 (1 night)
2018 Bag nights: 33

My mother in law was in town and there was no soccer, so I was planning on escaping for one night of solitude. It was still really hot (highs in low 80s), so I decided to revisit Laurel River Lake. I figured it would be hot paddling, but the lake was probably still warm enough to swim. Then last minute change of plans, my son said he wanted to go with me. He never got a solo trip with dad this summer like the other two kids, so I guess it was his turn.

We got on the water around 3 ...

... and had a one hour paddle to the White Oak campground. I aimed for the same spot where I had stayed before because there was a great "beach" to play on.

We both swam in the lake for a bit and then he started work on a fort with beer can towers on each end

Then we skipped rocks ...

... and gathered drift wood for a fire ...

... and waited for the stars to come out. The light pollution is terrible here and I don't understand where it is coming from, I guess Corbin to the south. No more astro-photography here. (Note: the light on the right on the water is a very large houseboat.)

We woke up to calm water...

 ... and he paddled by himself for a little bit while I enjoyed my coffee ...

... and then we packed up and headed home. I wish we could have spent a couple nights and explored the area a little more, maybe next time.

Laurel River Lake (again)

Holly Bay Campground, Laurel River Lake, Daniel Boone NF
7/29 - 7/31/17 (2 nights)
2017 bag nights: 21

We went back to Laurel River Lake for what is turning into an annual camping trip with friends from Danville. It was a beautiful weekend and there were only a couple walking tent sites left. We were lucky to get a double site with easy access to the water. For the future, the walk-in sites on the G Loop are a decent way down hill. It was a bit of a haul setting up camp, but we made it.

After getting set up, I inflated the kayak and squeezed all three kids in for a short paddle.

When we got back to camp, our friends had arrived and it was time for a swim.

Woke up to a beautiful day.

The kids had fun throwing rocks ...

...and then we played in the water. The oldest kids had fun paddling around in the cove.

The last day I took the oldest three for a short paddle and swim.

Both nights is was clear enough for astrophotography, but the first night I walked down to the shore, there was group of people with a lantern or something, so I headed back to the tent and went to bed. Thankfully, the second night no one was around so I got to play with my camera a little bit. It turns out there is a ton of light pollution to the northeast (I assume it is London). But I still got to practice.

As an experiment, I tried a whole bunch of slightly zoomed in photos. This is a stack of 35 8 second photos at 48mm. Not sure why, but there is a bit of blurring on the edges, the center still looks ok. Next time, I'll have to aim at a specific part of the sky and see what happens.

 
And then a couple milky way photos over the trees.

For the future, I think I will avoid Holly Bay on the weekends, it is way to crowded feeling when it is full. But, all in all, a great couple of nights with friends.