We noticed this week that we have a Golden Rainbow Trout in the lake! While I am not prepared to explain to cross breeding that went into such a fish, you can see their characteristics below. Anything is possible in the Appalachian Mountains and I think this is the fish's business and I am not one to judge when it comes to our aquatic species choosing a mate.
Above, we are working on stripping sod and repairing areas damaged by the torrential rain last fall. If you recall, on #10, one storm created severe flooding, which rolled up the turf on the "island" like a carpet. We have a long road ahead this spring to get all those type areas repaired. Picking up sod that is saturated with water is no easy task. Everything weighs 75% more and the work is that much harder when it's this wet. With roughly 6 weeks before opening, we just don't have the time to wait for the ground to dry out. It's not going to happen. There is now a 90% of rain for Monday. Kudos to my team for hanging in there. This isn't work that most people would be willing to do.
On #11, I took some more photos showing the disturbance area. This is the ground that will be raised 12"-18". You will notice above, the ridge that runs down #11 fairway. Everything left of the white line is dry. Everything to the right of the white line is in a depression the holds water like a giant bathtub. Our objective is to bring the depression up to the same elevation as the ridge on the 11th fairway.
The following photos below, show the disturbance area on #12 fairway (white line). This involves more drainage and sand capping in the landing area, possibly exposing more of the rock on the right hillside and then curbing a portion of the cart path to redirect the sheet flow of water. The goal is to eliminate what settles out at the bottom of the fairway and rough.
On #12, below, we are wrapping up the cleanup below the Jones tee. What a great improvement!
Look at what has been hidden all these years! It was buried in overgrowth. You can see the potential that Highlands CC has. There is so much beauty that is hidden because there has been no commitment to removing overgrown trees and shrubs. It's fun to be able to act on that now.
On #15, our new creek bank is set and all that is needed is a load of sod that we'll hopefully receive next week. Western NC sod farms aren't harvesting sod right now because it's entirely too wet.
Below, you can see the thinning and underbrushing that was done behind #13 tee. This allows for a better view of stream while standing on the tee.
