LAKESIDE
MAGAZINE
Couple creates private beach
By Heather Baggett
10-19-2005
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The Mixons pause at the edge of the water.
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Boats and docks are common sights along the lakeshore, but that’s not enough for one couple living on the lake.
Driving by Richard and Ellen Mixons’ house on Griffitt Bend Road, people often stop and stare at the sight they see before them. Yes, there is a boat and a dock — but there are also beach chairs, colorful umbrellas and even a slide. They have made their lakeshore into a beach.
"We did it for our grandkids," Ellen Mixon said.
While it may have started out as a treat for their two grandkids, they aren’t the only ones enjoying it.
"People stop by all the time to see the beach," Richard Mixon said.
The Mixons said they love to have company and often entertain family and friends. They own Alabama Heating and Cooling, a business that keeps them busy, especially in the summer months, Richard Mixon said.
The Mixons moved to the lake six and a half years ago. Prior to that, they lived in Birmingham for 21 years. Richard Mixon said that they still do a lot of their work in Birmingham but said the 60 mile drive home is worth it.
"Just sitting on the porch for 10 minutes at night is worth its weight in gold," Richard Mixon said.
The Mixons said their neighbors like the beach they have made. When they bought the house and property, the lake was not visible from the house because of trees along the shoreline. They cleared that and some of the land behind their house.
Of the 10 1/2 acres they own, they have left eight wooded and have built nature trails for the grandchildren to use behind their house. They have two grandchildren, Tristan, 8, and Makenna, 2.
The Mixons began building their beach their first summer at the lake. After cleaning off the trees, they began to work on their masterpiece.
"It was hard to make it work," Ellen Mixon said. "We can definitely tell people what not to do."
The first trial they faced was getting the right sand hauled in. They used marble sand to start with, but it washed away when it rained. Ellen Mixon said it wasn’t the waves that eroded the sand, but rather the water runoff from the hill that leads to the beach area.
They then used bunker sand, like that which can be found at golf courses, and that seems to have done the trick.
Richard Mixon said the bunker sand, while not as white as the marble sand, does not wash away like the marble sand. As a result they have not replaced the sand at their beach in at least three years.
But erosion was not the only challenge with bringing a bit of seashore to Central Alabama.
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The beach is a welcoming site on the lake.
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Ellen Mixon said they also put down landscape fabric to keep weeds from growing through the sand. This was unsuccessful because the fabric kept coming to the top of the sand.
She said they also put creek pebbles along the shoreline to have a firm foundation there. This worked well for the Mixons and they said they would recommend that to others who are looking to take on a similar project.
Richard Mixon said the area is perfect for swimming. The water is about 6 feet deep at the slide, which is at the end of the dock.
Ellen Mixon said they didn’t really plan their beach before they made it — they learned what worked and what didn’t from trial and error.
She said they just added more things every year until it became what it is today.
The cost of building the beach was not expensive and it has not been a financial burden to maintain. Richard Mixon said he found the slide on the Internet. After getting the right sand, the Mixons said they have not had a lot of cost for upkeep. They did say they had some damage to some of their chairs and their boat when a tornado came through.
The Mixons also added grass to the property after they moved in.
"There was no grass when we moved here," Ellen Mixon said. "We finally have adequate grass coverage, but we are still working on it."
The only complaint the Mixons have about living on the lake is a beaver.
"There is a beaver that kills my willow tree," Ellen Mixon said.
The Mixons asked someone who does landscaping what they could do to save their tree — the response they got was to "kill the beaver."
They don’t consider hurting the animal an option, so they are still living with the problem until they find a different solution.
When not running their business or enjoying the beach, the Mixons enjoy photography and have set up a deer feeder in their backyard so they can attract the animals and shoot them … with a camera, that is.
The Mixons not only enjoy their beach during the warm summer months but also during the winter.
"We put up Christmas lights around the beach area around Dec. 1 each year," Richard Mixon said.
As unusual as their creation is, the Mixons are not the only residents around the lake to have a beach. They said they have seen a couple of other beaches along the lake.
Now that they have six decks and porches on their property and a beach full of chairs, slides and benches, Ellen Mixon wants to add on to the house before adding to the beach or building other things on the property.
Richard Mixon on the other hand, wants to build a few more decks and porches and is considering building a couple of cabins and form a Christian couples retreat in the wooded area on their property.
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About Heather Baggett
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Heather Baggett is a sports reporter for The Daily Home.
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Contact Heather Baggett
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