Boyd Anderson

In the classic movie “The Sound of Music” Julie Andrews sings the oft-parodied "My Favorite Things". Personally, “raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens” don’t find a place on my list, but what I do identify with is the simplicity of the things named. We seem to strive for the grandiose, but it’s usually the simple things in life that bring us real joy.

One of “my favorite things” is a nearly daily occurrence on the Little Red River. It’s the river mist, a fog that forms almost daily throughout much of the year in the early morning and late afternoon.

A simple thing, I know, but it’s beautiful. Sitting in the mist while you’re trout fishing, you sometimes can’t see more than a few feet past the end of the boat.

The Old Testament speaks of a dense cloud that would appear in the Temple, a visual representation of the presence of God... Maybe that’s why I feel a little closer to Him on the river…

One of the great things about being a real estate professional in a resort community is that there are times you can engage in outdoor recreation and still call it "work". As my colleague Howard Calhoun says, sometimes it’s like being a professional golfer.

This was one of those times.

We had been brainstorming about ways to provide useful information to people visiting our area and came up with the idea of doing a series on basic trout fishing techniques. Trout fishing on the Little Red River is something that I did with my dad from a young age. Now that I’m pushing 40, I do the same with my own kids. Our first video, “Trout Fishing 101,” is the most basic approach for catching trout and it’s probably the best way to go if you have small children that aren’t yet skilled enough to work an artificial lure.

As Howard will demonstrate, it works.

Normally in real estate, the term "red lining" is a bad thing. It refers to the practice of denying (or increasing the cost of) services to certain areas. The term originally came from the practice of marking a red line on a map to delineate areas where banks would not lend. However, the “red line” on water front property on Greers Ferry Lake is something different altogether.

Many people familiar with the US Army Corps of Engineers project known as Greers Ferry Lake understand the “white line”. It is the “fee taking line” where private property ends and the government property consisting of the lake and its surrounding real estate begin.

Fewer people, though, have an understanding of the “red line”.

The red line refers to the flowage easement up to 491’ above sea level. Normal pool of Greers Ferry Lake is 461.3 feet above sea level. When land was purchased to create Greers Ferry Lake, the Government also purchased easement rights for property that remained privately owned, but fell below 491’ sea level. The flowage easement grants to the Government the right to periodically flood the land up to the 491’ level. Because of this, structures for human habitation and septic fields are not allowed below 491’. There are trees marked with red paint in the general location of the 491’ line, however, the exact location at any given point varies with the contour of the land. Therefore, it is recommended that a landowner obtain the services of a professional surveyor before commencing any new construction near the red line. For other structures such as roads, outbuildings and electric service lines, permission must be first obtained from the Corps of Engineers before placing onto the flowage easement area.

For more detailed information on the shoreline management policy, check the website of the Corps of Engineers Greers Ferry project.

Boyd Anderson
Crye*Leike Brock Real Estate
Principal Broker
www.HeberSpringsRealEstate.com
(501) 206-8845 cell
(501) 362-5868 office