Jennings Randolph

[zeebyrd]

Such a beautiful lake. I decided to go to Jennings Randolph Lake today. While I didn’t catch anything worth mentioning I’m sharing some pics of the gorgeous water color. All were taken with my iPhone 14.

Jennings Randolph is in Garrett County MD and Mineral County WVa on the North Branch of the Potomac River.

Max. depth: 296 feet
952 acres

[dsaavedra]

That's some wild looking water. What gives it that color? Usually when I see water that color it's an abandoned quarry and the color comes from exposed minerals

[zeebyrd]

Jennings Randolph Lake was “built” by the Army Corp of Engineers. The North Branch of the Potomac is the inflow and outflow of the lake.

it is probably due to minerals. It is a regular color. I have pics from about 15 years ago there with the same color water. Pic from my former motorcycle days below - around 15 years ago.

Considering part of the lake is in Mineral County WVa might hint at the source of the color.

I have never seen it up close before. Being on the water and seeing it close up is amazing.

I want to stop at the office there next time I go there. It would be interesting to see what information they have about the lake.

I went to Rocky Gap in Flintstone MD. That lake has the clearest water I have ever seen. Things so far are different out here. I am enjoying it.
DSCF0026_Original.jpg

[dsaavedra]

I went to Rocky Gap for the first time a couple years ago and could not get over how clear the water was. I could easily see the tops of weed beds 10+ ft down. I actually didn't get a single bite and I blame it on the clear water lol, I didn't have any leaders with me at the time

[zeebyrd]

I have read that there is acid mine runoff from abandoned mines that makes its way into Randolph Jennings. But that is supposed to be sulfur based. That shouldn’t cause the green color.

[Mark]

I also have visited Randolph Jennings. The water color is strunning.

The color comes from human intervention. As Laura noted, much of the drainage into the reservoir is contaminated by acid from abandoned mines in the area. To neutralize the acid, various dosing stations of lime were placed as a remediation effort by the Maryland Bureau of Mines at points along the North Branch of the Potomac in the early1990s. The lime contributes to the blue/turquoise color of the reservoir. Prior to the installatioin of these stations, the river was almost dead from the highly acidic water -- no insects or fish. The lime stations have proved to be a success in restoring aquatic life.

[zeebyrd]

Hi Mark,

I knew about the previous condition of the river due to mine runoff. I did not know about the lime stations. I was wondering if there was a mineral in the area that was causing the coloration.

I was talking to someone who said to catch walleye this time of year that he drops his bait with a 3
ounce weight to get it down to 40 ft. I hope to try this one day.

it’s great out here in western Maryland. So many more fresh water fishing opportunities. Plus there is no traffic.

[Memory Maker]

Those lime stations turned the river above the lake from dead to some great fishing. Glad you made it there.