Saturday, March 13, was pretty chilly and gloomy. But that did not deter the crowd that turned out at the Norfork National Fish Hatchery for the opening of the new boardwalk and fishing platforms.

The ceremony was brief. A few words from Davy Wotton, former President of the Friends of the Norfork National Fish Hatchery, and from Ken Boyles, recently retired manager of the hatchery.  And some words of gratitude from the mobility impaired anglers who were able to attend the ceremony.

But the talking was kept short and everyone soon moved down to the fishing platforms to enjoy their day and Fish On!

Boardwalk Construction Status - 2/5/2010

On November 23, 2009, The Friends of the Norfork National Fish Hatchery signed a contract with Touchstone Inc. (in partnership with Builders Construction) for the construction of the Dry Run Creek boardwalk.

Touchstone was by far the lowest bidder and had excellent references. We have been very happy with their cooperation and the work that they have done.

Construction started in the first week of December and moved forward quite quickly. However, weather (much more weather than was expected!) and serious water seepage along the bank just before the first outlet pipe has recently slowed the construction.

An engineering firm has identified a solution for the water seepage. At this point, once the weather permits, construction should be completed within a few weeks.