by J. Allen Smith

As storm season approaches I must give a story of my storm training.

If you know me, you know I’ve spent my life arround the lakes. My favorite place in the whole wide world is Dale Hollow Lake. From a young child, my family spent endless hours on the lake.

My father, Gayle Smith, taught me to always watch the weather conditions.

In a time before weather radios, we kept a barometer on the snack bar beside the kitchen.

The barometer measured changes in the atmospheric conditions.

I knew this instrument as a tool to tell us when to go fishin’!

Many times dad would check the barometer at lunch and then in the late afternoon he would say, “Let’s go fishing”, most of the time with success. One particular day, Dad and I were on the lake on a perfect spring afternoon. The conditions were favorable for afternoon storms.

Dad always taught me to keep watch for changing clouds. This day was no different than any other day we had gone fishing. The clouds were building in the west and looked stormy so we decided to head south around the clouds.

We passed by Eagle Cove Marina and headed for the cut-through at Tennessee Island. About the time we cleared the opening there was a small waterspout (a tornado on the water) right there in front of us.

The deck boat we were in had a canopy and the high winds just spun us right around back in the direction we came from. I screamed, “Which way do we go now?” Dad said as he pointed straight in front of us, “We go this WAY!”(Like we had a choice).

We then weathered the short storm in a nearby cove. After the storm, the calm of the lake was refreshing. It always pays to keep aware of the forecasts and continue to watch current conditions.

Technology today is advancing the ability to predict dangerous weather conditions and to help increase awareness. I still love to watch storms but always respect the power of Mother Nature!

Thanks for the training DAD!

J. Allen Smith

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