Nashville Lakes for Boaters: The Water Near Nashville

Somebody at work asked me why I'd want a boat like Doreen in Middle Tennessee, like we live in a desert or something. Ya know, fair question if all you've seen of Nashville is Broadway. But there's a whole lot of water around here. The Cumberland runs right through downtown and there are two big Corps of Engineers lakes sitting on either side of the city. I've been reading up on all of it while I wait on the boat, so here's what I found.

The Cumberland through town

Downtown Nashville sits on Cheatham Lake, which is really just the stretch of the Cumberland between two dams. Cheatham Lock is downstream at river mile 148.6 near Ashland City, and Old Hickory is upstream at mile 216.2. Do the math and that's about 67 miles of river.

It still looks and acts like a river though. It's narrow in spots, there's current, and you share it with barges that don't care much about your weekend plans. This is the stretch I care about most, because it's how I'd get from Clarksville to Nashville by boat. Come up through Cheatham Lock, run up past Ashland City, and tie up at the downtown docks. I wrote all about those in The Cumberland River in Nashville.

Old Hickory Lake

Old Hickory Lake is just upstream of Nashville on the Cumberland. The Corps says it was authorized by the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1946. They started building in January 1952 and it was finished for full use in December 1957, when the last power unit came online. It covers about 22,500 acres at normal pool.

Aerial photo of Old Hickory Lock and Dam on the Cumberland River — Old Hickory Lock and Dam, the upstream end of the Nashville stretch. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Hendersonville is on the north shore and the town of Old Hickory is on the south side, right above the dam. The Corps lists eight marinas, two Corps campgrounds and 41 boat access sites. There are four swim beaches too, at Cedar Creek, Laguardo, Lock 3 and Old Hickory Beach. The Corps also says the water level only moves about three feet between minimum and normal pool, which I kinda love. Less guessing at the ramp.

From everything I've read, Old Hickory is the busy one. Lots of houses, lots of docks, lots of wakes on a summer Saturday. If you like a crowd and a sandbar party, that's probably your lake.

Percy Priest Lake

J. Percy Priest Lake is on the Stones River, which feeds into the Cumberland. The dam is about ten miles east of downtown and you can see it from I-40, which I've done about a thousand times without ever really looking. The lake runs 42 miles long and covers about 14,200 acres at summer pool.

The history on this one is kinda funny. It was first authorized back in 1938 as the Stewart's Ferry project, and then Congress just never paid for it. It sat there for years. In 1958 they renamed it for Congressman J. Percy Priest, who'd represented Nashville from 1940 until he died in 1956, and the Corps' own page says the name change helped shake the money loose. It got funded in 1963 and President Lyndon Johnson dedicated it in 1968. A whole town called Old Jefferson went under the water when it filled, which is the part of these lake stories I always think about.

Here's the catch for a guy like me. Percy Priest has no lock to the Cumberland. So I can't just run Doreen over there from the river. You trailer in. The Corps lists five commercial marinas and three swim areas, at Anderson Road, Cook and Seven Points. Seven Points has a campground with 58 hookup sites and a ramp, and the sailing and rowing clubs are out there too, so from what I hear it has a calmer, sailboat-y kind of feel.

Cheatham Lake below town

Below downtown the river runs down past Ashland City toward Cheatham Dam. It's quieter down there. The Corps marina list for Cheatham Lake has Riverview Marina in Ashland City, Commodore Yacht Club and Rock Harbor Marina in Nashville, and Harpeth Shoals Marina near where the Harpeth comes in. I haven't been to any of them yet, so call ahead about fuel and transient slips before you count on them.

So which one?

Honestly it depends what you want out of the day. If I had to put it in one line each:

The Cumberland through Nashville: a real river trip with a city at the end of it.
Old Hickory: big, busy, lived on, lots of places to put in.
Percy Priest: close to town, trailer only, sailboats and swim beaches.
Cheatham below town: quiet river and small town marinas.

What I'd tell a new boater

Wear the life jacket. The Corps says it on every single lake page and they mean it. Watch for barges on the river and give them a lot of room. Know whether you're on a river lake with current or a still lake, because a boat handles different on each one. And if you're coming from Clarksville like me, remember the river and Percy Priest don't connect. Don't be the guy who finds that out with a full cooler.

If you're new to all this, I wrote up how to launch a boat and the Tennessee boating license rules too. I'm learning this stuff the same as anybody.

When Doreen finally gets here, the first long run is going to be up through Cheatham to Nashville. Tess is going to want to know how long it takes and where we eat when we get there. Fair questions. I'll write about how it goes.

Got a favorite ramp or marina around Nashville? Tell me. I'd rather hear it from somebody who's been there than figure it out the hard way.