CHRISTMAS BOATERS

 Even though the yellow light was lit on Sweetwater due to high water, several residents enjoyed the warm Christmas Day weather by taking boat rides.  Mark and Elizabeth Saunders tried out their new peddle kayak that Santa brought.

LEAF KING

 This leaf removal company out of Franklin has to be the last word in leaf removal.  The area is near the end of the "leaf season" for 2021 but there are still some "late bloomers" for getting the job done.  I don't regularly recommend companies but this one has got it all together!  Got a "hard to get to" location?  This company can go by water and load a pontoon boat with the leaves then reload them on land to dispose of.  (

Setser Lawn Landscape)

FESTIVE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

 As December opens up, Christmas lights have begun to appear around the lakes.  Of note is the CSLOA clubhouse property and the Cleefman property both at the entrance to the lakes.  The annual woods/display by Jerry and Loraine Cleefman with Christmas songs is always appreciated.  This season, Jim and Brenda Malden have taken extra interest and installed lights on the clubhouse and library.  Jim and Brenda  erected their new Christmas Tree in the lawn area of the property today.  

NEW WATER METERS

 The Conservancy is now installing new water meter equipment at strategic locations around the area.  The installation of these meters is to better locate water leaks around the area.  

SNOW!!!

 The first snow of the season arrived this morning.  It stuck to some of the rooftops but the ground is still to warm.  Hard to believe that we were water skiing last Sunday and snow this Sunday!  Welcome to Indiana!

HALLOWEEN TRADITIONS

 The Cordry Sweetwater Fire Department and Church of the Lakes sponsored a "trunk or treat" event last night for trick or treaters.  And, of course, the 4 way stop in Nineveh was decorated in tradition with toilet paper!

FISH STORY

 Look what was caught in Sweetwater earlier this week!

HAUNTED TRAIL AND HAYRIDE

 The annual Haunted Trail and Hayride was a huge success of the past weekend.  There was a record crowd on Saturday night.  The hayride wagons operated past midnight!

BOATS OUT

 It's time for the boats to come out and be winterized.  October has been unusually warm, but we all know that the end is in sight!  The ramps at both Cordry Lake and Sweetwater Lake have been busy!!!

TREE DOWN

 A huge oak tree simply crashed this past week closing Sweetwater Drive near Hummingbird Drive.  No big wind, no storm, no lightning....just fell over!  Rotten hollow interior finally couldn't support the upper structure of the tree.  Thanks to conservancy workers and Utility company for clearing the road.

WARM OCTOBER WEEKEND

 The calendar may read October 9th and 10th but the weather say "summer!"  Temperatures in the 80's brought out the cruisers, skiers, and swimmers!  My neighbor, Kathy, across the way donned her swimsuit and went paddleboating!

FALL COLORS

 The daylight hours are getting shorter and the water temperature is going down!  (72 degrees)   I'm hoping that last week's 6 inch rain will feed the trees and give us good color this fall.  We're already starting to see a few trees starting to turn.  Here's hoping for a colorful autumn.

SUMMER ACTIVITIES CONTINUE

 It may be that September is waning but summer activities continue!  Scuba divers and swimmers were at the beach last week.  My neighbors children were still enjoying the water lily mat yesterday and there were water skiers on the lake yesterday.  Water temperature is 72 degrees.

BACK GATE TRAILER

 The mobile home trailer located at the south back gate entrance is being loaded and going away today.  The unit has been there for 32 years!  A new home is scheduled to be built in its place.   This site used to be a public one room school for 1st and 2nd graders in the area. 

OX ROAST TIME

 The Annual Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owners Association OX ROAST is this Saturday, September 4th.

The Silent Auction tent is up and will be filled with goodies to bid for.  The event also includes other exhibiters and food in the club house.  Hours are 11:00 - 7:00 PM.

SPECIAL NEEDS DAY

 Special Needs Day at Sweetwater Beach had numerous volunteers and helpers for the event sponsored by the Huffman family of Sweetwater Lake.  Tubing, boat rides, and swimming at the beach put lots of smiles on lots of people.

OOOOOPSIE!

 Sweetwater Boat Ramp.....Owner says car slipped out of park!.  Thank goodness no one was in the car.

HORSE FLIES

 The last few weeks of August always brings Horse Flies!  Other lovely bugs also prevalent during the end of summer include gnats and yellow jackets.  The yellow jackets usually live in burrows in the ground and attack people with mowers and string trimmers.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

 I attended the CSLOA - OX ROAST meeting this week.  Looks like they are getting organized for the Labor Day weekend event.  Looks like Mr. Jay Turner is in charge of the kitchen and HE NEEDS HELP!  He needs volunteers for 2 and 3 hour shifts in the kitchen.  It can be a fun experience meeting and working with local lakers!   We need to make this a success with your help!!!   Please volunteer.

CONSTRUCTION GONE WILD!

 There are numerous construction projects in the Conservancy.  New docks, remodeling, new home, etc.  Always seek the proper permits from Nick Johann in the Conservancy office.  Pictured is a work barge being loaded at the Sweetwater ramp area.

SIT AND SEW

 Just look how the Sit And Sew group did at the local county fair in Nashville  last week.  In addition to completing a quilt for fundraising purposes, they entered individual items and received all colors of ribbons!  The group meets on Tuesday mornings at the clubhouse.

PAVING UNDERWAY

 Milestone is completing paving on several  roads in the Conservancy last week and this week.

FIREWORKS WENT ON AS PLANNED!

 It was perfect timing!  As the launch time for the annual fireworks arrived so did heavy rain.  Evidently the commitment to do the fireworks continued no matter rain or shine.  There weren't any boats out to enjoy the show.  Many people watched from their cars on the beach or homes near the beach area.

CICADA DAMAGE

 The "Cicada session"  may be over but the damage will linger on for awhile.  The dead leaves on many oak trees was the result of the Cicada.  There is no actual damage to the trees ...just the ends of branches.

JOSH HAWLEY FARWELL

 A farewell celebration for Josh Hawley,  Conservancy Manager, was organized by the CSCD office workers for this evening.   A handsome crowd gathered at the beach shelter house to bid Josh good luck in his new job.   Pizza and drinks were served and Josh did offer his thoughts and thanks in a brief speech applauded by all.  

ANNUAL GARAGE SALE

 The social event of the summer is the annual fire department garage sale.  Now that the pandemic is over, it's time to get together and paw over everyone's castaways this Saturday, June 26th.  

HIGH WATER

 Roughly 4.5 inches of rain all Friday night into Saturday morning taught us all the Mother Nature rules!  The creek that runs alongside Sweetwater Trail at the back gate was out of its banks floating logs and debris all along the road.  Some trees were leaning on the power lines.  Sweetwater Lake was on Red all weekend and Cordry was Yellow on Saturday and maybe Green on Sunday.  Trouble is that the watershed area that drains into Sweetwater is several times larger than the watershed that feeds Cordry.  And the add to the equation is the fact that the spillway tubes are basically equal size for either lake.  Sweetwater Lake just can't get rid of the water fast enough.  As of this writing, Sweetwater Level is still lapping many docks and over seawalls into yards.

CORDRY SWEETWATER SIT & SEW

 The girls at Cordry Sweetwater Sit & Sew have been working on a "cabin quilt" all spring. They are just about finished and quite proud of the end result.   They will be selling chances for $5 each or $20 for 5 chances.  Proceeds will benefit the Brown County Humane Society and the Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owners Association.  Watch for the official announcement on the CSLOA website and facebook pages.

LAKE TREATMENT TODAY

 Both lakes will be treated for Milfoil weeds today.  Treatment for Pond Weed comes later in the summer.

CAMP ATTERBURY INVADES!

 Local resident Josh Evans applies for permission to use Sweetwater Beach and the nature trails for training purposes.  The soldiers completed a 2.5 mile hike w/backpacks, then swam 100 yards in full military garb, then a final 2.5 mile hike in wet clothing/boots.

REMODELING

 Lots of remodeling and expansion of homes going on both lakes.  

THE'RE HERE!

 The beloved Cicada are arriving...get ready!

FLAGS

 The Flags are up on both dams.  Looks festive for the coming summer season.

FULL HOUSE

 The collection of Martin Houses near the Sweetwater gas pumps are at capacity!  Keep eating those bug kids!

FLASH FLOODING

 The rain gods let loose of approximately 3.25 inches of rain early this morning resulting in flash flooding along Sweetwater Trail and the Salt Creek.  Sweetwater dam light is on red and Cordry dam light is on yellow.  Salt Creek below Sweetwater Lake is out of its banks.

BOB WRIGHT PAVILION

 It was a beautiful day at the lake!  A handsome crowd gathered for dedication of the Bob Wright Pavilion.  Bob and wife Anita have always been community minded.  Bob has served on various committees and local boards through the years.  He was instrumental with the development of Center Lake Park and other projects around the Conservancy.  Bob passed last fall and will be missed by all.

SNOW!

 Hard to believe we had snow flurries last night that disappointed everyone.  This morning the county was beautiful with the wet snow sticking to everything.