Mountain Island Lake in North Carolina

Trip Overview

We started out around 8:00 am on Saturday morning and decided to put in at the Latta Plantation North Canoe Access. We paddled North on the lake troll fishing as we went.

This part of the lake is great because there are not too many houses and there are plenty of places to pull over and rest, etc. After about 30 minutes of paddling, you will get past all of the houses and will be able to explore some great little coves.

One cove in particular was very shallow and we could see HUGE carp swimming under our kayaks. Too bad we didn't have carp bait that day. If you keep paddling North, you will see a large sand bar where boaters dock and play volleyball, etc. This is a great place to stop and eat or just relax. If you leave the sand bar to the left, you will go around an island where only a canoe or kayak can get. The water is really shallow, but you can see a lot of great wildlife. Heron, turtles galore, beaver, and tons of other birds since this is part of the Wildlife Bird Sanctuary.

We continued north where the lake narrows down and goes toward the River Bend Power Station. If you take your time exploring coves and stopping every now and then, you can make it to the Power Plant in about 2-3 hours. We took our time so decided to turn around once we made it to the plant.

Mountain Island Lake is a great place to canoe or kayak because there isn't too many powerboats, and there are lots of natural coves and creeks to explore. The fishing is pretty good also.

Accommodations:

Great place to park and put in.

Fees:

No fees

Directions:

In Charlotte, take the Hwy 16 / Brookshire Blvd. exit off of Interstate 85. Go north on 16 for approx. 8 miles until you get to the light at Mt. Holly / Huntersville Rd.(Wal Mart on corner). Turn right and go a few miles and turn left onto Beatties Ford Rd. Continue 2 or 3 miles and turn left into Latta Plantation park. North Canoe access is beside horse barn.