After months of delay, Carroll Lake begins refilling process

McKENZIE, Tenn. — After 36 months of lying empty, Carroll Lake is finally on its way back to its former picturesque state.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has been working to restore the lake after floodwaters damaged the spillway more than two years ago.

People in the area say they couldn’t be more excited.

“The water is back,” Carroll County resident Junie Knight said. “It doesn’t look dead like it used to. It’s alive, and you’ve got the animals coming back. It’s just alive.”

Knight says since the lake started to refill, she’s made a visit nearly every day to check on the progress.

“I come down here to get peace and quiet,” she said. “I like to read my Bible. It’s just enjoyment. I’m glad they got the water back in here. It looks a whole lot prettier.”

After the TWRA shut the flood gates on Jan. 25, Clear Creek started to feed the lake.

The refilling process is expected to take between 60 to 120 days, but Nathan Warden with the TWRA said it’s already filling faster than they expected.

“I’m excited to have it back,” he said. “It’s another fishing opportunity in the area for people to go to and a place for families to go. That’s what it is, a family fishing lake.”

Carroll Lake might be known as a fishing lake, but people won’t be able to use it for that purpose until 2020, when the fish are expected to be fully grown.

But until then, Warden said people are welcome to come and check out the lake’s progress.

“Everyone in the community is just happy this day is finally here,” he said. “It’s taken quite a while to get here, but I’m glad we’re here. Everyone is just looking forward to having the lake back the way it was before.”

The TWRA is also working on adding boat paths and adding more places to fish once the lake is reopened.