Reelfoot
Lake is near Tiptonville TN and it is a fisherman's and boater's paradise.
We stayed in the State Park on the lake and discovered it is also a
delight for campers and hikers. This morning, at breakfast, we were
entertained by a huge blue heron, sunning himself among the cypress trees
just behind our rig. Several families of ducks – one including nine
babies! -- also enjoy the cypress knees and other water plants here along
the edge of the lake near our campsite.
We set out this morning on the driving tour around the lake. On our
way, we learned two different versions of its beginnings. The Chickasaw
Indians, for whom this area was home, believe that Reelfoot Lake was
formed near the beginning of the nineteenth century, by the Great Spirit
stamping his foot in anger. The Father of Waters (Mississippi River)
heard, reversed his flow temporarily and filled up The Great Spirit's
footprint, forming this lake.
The cause of this divine anger was Reelfoot, a Chickasaw chief who had
been born with a crooked foot. His deformity caused him to walk or run
with a rolling motion, so his people named him Kalopin, meaning Reelfoot.
He governed his people well but could not find a suitable wife among his
own people. So, he and a few of his tribesmen, traveled south into the
lands of the Choctaw people. There, he fell in love with the daughter of
the chief who refused to consider Reelfoot's repeated requests for her.
The Great Spirit warned Reelfoot, by way of a medicine man, that it was
against tribal law to steal a wife from a neighboring tribe. Such an
action would be punished with dire consequences: the earth would rock and
the waters would swallow up Reelfoot's village and bury his people.
For awhile, this warning restrained Reelfoot's desire for the Choctaw
Beauty. But, when winter returned, he and his warriors rode south to the
land of the Choctaws, captured her and took her back to his home village.
As the marriage festival was being celebrated, the earth began to rock as
The Great Spirit stamped his foot in anger. Then, The Father of Waters
buried Reelfoot, his bride and his people under this enormous lake.
The second explanation for the lake is less picturesque but more
factual. A series of earthquakes occurred near New Madrid, MO, between
December 16, 1811 and February 7, 1812. During that period, a total of
1,784 tremors occurred. Three or four were major quakes, accompanied by
thunderous sounds, billows of sulfurous vapors and vast changes of the
geography of the area. Fissures occurred in the earth which belched forth
liquid rock-like material. The Mississippi River receded from its banks,
briefly rose like a mountain some fifteen feet in the air, and for a time
reversed its flow! The area was very sparsely populated at that time so
there was little loss of life, but Reelfoot Lake was created!
The lake is large, irregularly shaped and extends across the state line
into the southwest corner of Kentucky. Most of the surrounding area is
State Wildlife Reserve and it is home to a rich variety of birds and
wildlife: wild ducks, Canadian geese, herons of various types and sizes,
turtles, snakes, raccoons, bobcats, squirrels, beaver, otters, and, of
course, fish. Hiking trails lead through wetlands, cypress swamps and
heavily forested areas around the lake. We were thankful for good weather
for exploring!
At a little museum on the lakeshore, we learned that a special kind of
boat has been developed for travel on this lake. At places, the lake is
quite shallow, so the "Reelfoot stump jumper" is a
flat-bottomed, lightweight craft designed to speed right over the cypress
roots. It is also equipped with unique "bow-facing oars." They
are like conventional oars but they have an extension rod hinged into the
middle of the shaft. The result is that the direction of the oar's power
is reversed. The rower can sit facing the bow of the boat, see the course
ahead and row in that same direction. We wondered why such
"bow-facing oars" are not used in boats elsewhere?
Stomachs hungry for lunch and the need to do some grocery-shopping kept
us from completing the tour. Perhaps there will be another day!
