Smith Lake is Low…

The drought has hit area waterways hard this year, and Smith Lake northwest of Birmingham is really starting to show it. The water level has dropped to 493.3 feet, and Alabama Power expects it to drop to 492.1 feet by September 26. I took these pictures yesterday from a slough on County Road 109 (Misty Harbor Road) between Dodge City and Brushy Pond in southwestern Cullman County.

This is the point where Alabama Highway 69 used to run between Valley Springs and Bremen. When the lake was flooded in 1961, old 69 was submerged and the route was moved to the highway between I-65 at Dodge City to Bremen. In these pictures, you can see the old road bed that has emerged as the water level has fallen. Just a month ago, the pictured docks were floating on the water, but now they’re in the mud.

Category: Pre-November 2010 Posts