Hello LSC.

We have heard recent reports about unsafe boating issues around the lake, including speeding in the Channel and unsafe jet ski operation.

So, last Saturday, we invited the Lake St. Catherine Game Warden, Justin Turner, to a Meet & Greet with the lake community. We had a great turnout with a great mix of folks from all areas around LSC, including Rutland-Bennington state house district Representative Sally Achey.

Justin listened to everyone's concerns, and answered everyone's questions.

Residents described boaters speeding through the Channel causing potential safety issues with children swimming nearby and shoreline erosion. Also discussed were reports of jet skis being operated at high speeds too close to other boaters, and operating after sundown.

Some ideas that were discussed included:

• Outreach to the Vermont State Police Marine Division
• Increased presence by the Game Warden and Vermont State Police
• During visits by Justin or VSP, prioritize speeding and unsafe boating issues
• A 'citizens patrol' in which we employ someone with enforcement capabilities
• Adding a speeding warning sign to the Fish & Wildlife Boat Launch in Wells
• Asking our Boat Launch Greeters to mention the no wake rule in the Channel when completing the vessel inspection and/or pointing out the speeding warning sign
• Timing visits by the Warden or VSP to coincide with high traffic days, fishing tournaments, etc.
• Justin explained how residents can be an 'expert witness' of unsafe boating by taking a photo or video and capturing or noting their registration number - and then reporting it to him
• Residents felt that issuing tickets with a fine would deter unsafe boating

Justin made it clear that he heard everyone's concerns.

Justin explained that he can't be here as often as he'd like, and that the Wardens are understaffed. Justin's coverage area includes 9 towns: Arlington, Sunderland, Sandgate, Manchester, Rupert, Dorset, Pawlet, Danby and Wells. Although his area does not include Poultney, he is responsible for all of Lake St. Catherine.

We thank Justin for his time to speak with us last weekend.

As a followup to this meeting with Justin, we reached out to Sergeant Trevor Carbo of the Vermont State Police who is in Special Operations, Recreation Enforcement with the attendees' concerns.

In correspondence with Sergeant Carbo, he indicated that his department is also experiencing staffing issues. He noted that they are seeing an increase in reports of unsafe boating on all bodies of water in the state, fueled by a combination of increased interest in outdoor activities and inexperienced boaters.

He also let us know that the idea of a hired citizen patrol with enforcement capabilities would not be possible. State statute, hiring, training requirements, insurance and liability concerns would make this idea prohibitive.

Sergeant Carbo stated that he would share our concerns with Fish & Wildlife, and that he'd also share our concerns with his department in the Rutland office so they can focus on these issues when they are here.

If you witness unsafe boating, and would like to report it, please call Justin on his cell: 802-595-8754.

You can read more about LSC Lake Safety including Vermont and Lake St. Catherine specific boating rules on our website here: https://lakestcatherine.org/lake-safety

Thank you.

Hello LSC.

We'd like to announce a milfoil cleanup 'Community Day' in the Channel and Little Lake on Sunday, July 25th, and give you an update on our Milfoil Control efforts so far this season.

Milfoil Cleanup 'Community Day': Members of the LSCA and LSCCF have been planning for a 'Community Day' in the Channel and Little Lake areas to organize volunteers to collect all the floating milfoil they can find as an educational and hands-on 'Stop The Spread' event to benefit the lake on Sunday, July 25th, beginning at 9 AM. We have been informed that neighbors in the Channel would like this to expand past a single day event, to become a season-long effort - which is FANTASTIC - and we have made arrangements to make this happen.

A very generous member of the lake community from West Lake Road (thanks Heather!) has loaned a floating platform so it can be used as an easily accessible drop-off point in the Channel. This platform was installed in the Channel this weekend:

If you are heading towards the Little Lake from the bridge, this platform is set up in front of the last camp on the left (thanks Dawn & Joel!) in the Channel before getting to Little Lake. That's Dawn on her kayak testing it out.

Also, very generous Little Lake residents on Clayton Tract (thanks Karla & Mike!) will make one of their docks available as a drop-off point in the Little Lake.

The orange dots on the map on the left indicate where the designated drop-off points are.

We'll be asking volunteers to get out on the Channel and on the Little Lake to collect all the floating milfoil they can find and deposit it on one of our 2 drop-off points. Then, the Lake St. Catherine Association's DASH team will come down and pickup the collected milfoil for disposal.

After this initial milfoil cleanup Community Day, the two drop-off points will stay in place, and weekly pickups will be made. The milfoil will be collected and delivered to the DASH team for disposal.

Thank you to all the volunteers who have gotten us this far - the project has been planned and a workflow is in place.

Now we need you!

So, we hope to see you out there on the lake in your kayak, on your boat or SUP, or in or on any other kind of floating craft you can bring to be ready to do some milfoil scooping!

We'll provide additional details as we get closer to the event. Mark your calendar for Sunday, July 25th! Thanks.

ProcellaCOR treatment: As you know, 3 areas were treated for milfoil this year: Halls Bay, a small area north of the Channel, and an area of Little Lake.

Based on the reports we've received from many of you, and our own observations, the treatment has been very effective. In Little Lake, you can actually see the line where the treatment area ends (see the map on the left). 

This does not mean that the work is done for the season.

We still need your help to make sure these excellent results are not squandered.

It's up to all of us to stop the spread of milfoil.

We recently posted the document "What You Can Do To Help Stop The Spread Of Milfoil" which outlines the best practices that you can follow to help to stop the spread. The LSCA Boat Launch Greeters have also been handing this flyer out around the lake, so you may have already received a printed copy.

We hope you can follow these best practices which apply lake-wide. There are also Little Lake specific best practices for 2021:

Please help to do your part. 

The treatment in Little Lake this season is part of a 3-year plan to help get milfoil under control there. In March, the LSCA and LSCCF reached out to the lake community and launched a fundraiser to help pay for this plan. Within just a few weeks, we reached our goal of $12,000, which covered a third of the $36,000 estimate. The LSCA and LSCCF each contributed $12,000 to cover the full amount of the year 1 treatment. 

Donations have continued to come in, and we have currently raised over $5,000 to be used for year 2. You can contribute to the 3-year Little Lake plan, and read more about it by clicking here: https://lakestcatherine.org/little-lake-milfoil-control.

Soon, there will be a 1 month post treatment survey, and in late September, there will be a detailed lake-wide aquatic plant survey (you can see our 17 years of aquatic plant surveys on LSC by clicking here). Using the data and information collected from these surveys, a plan of action will be created for year 2.

Diver Assisted Suction Harvesting (DASH): As you can see in the flyer image above which includes the map of LSC, the areas highlighted in green are designated to be worked on by our DASH team. They hand pull the milfoil from the bottom of the lakebed by the roots and then suction the full plant to the surface for safe removal from the lake. 

The divers started hand pulling milfoil in the designated areas in late June, and were able to begin full operations using the suction equipment on July 1st. They will continue working throughout the summer. 

The DASH team is reporting that the milfoil they are seeing in their work areas on the Big Lake have low / sparse milfoil density, and plants are single strands with small root masses. 

Each Monday, we'll post an update as to where the DASH team will be working during that week.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to these milfoil control efforts this season. Many in our lake community have made donations, and many are putting in the work to get as much milfoil out of the lake as they can. 

If we are all pitching in, we can collectively make a huge impact - please speak to your neighbors and help to get the word out.

 Let's do this!

Thank you.

We got in the 9th Annual Boat Parade, right before the rain started.

Thank you to all who participated, to those who cheered from their boat and from the shore, and to everyone who voted.

We hope you enjoyed it!

The votes are in, and we have our winners...

Most Patriotic:

Boat #19 - Laura Frost - Liberty

Runner up:

Boat #20 - Chris Conte - Patriotic

Funniest:

Boat #12 - Sarah Conine - Horsing Around With The Cows

Runner up:

Boat #4 - Laurie Miller - America Runs On Dunkin'

Most Original:

Boat #2 - The Roth Family - Scooby Doo Mystery Machine

Runner up:

Boat #21 - The Bilotta Family - Summer Camp

Best Overall:

Boat #10 - Tonia and Paul Ramirez - Sponge Bob

Runner up:

Boat #2 - The Roth Family - Scooby Doo Mystery Machine

Are you a member yet? Maintaining the lake costs approximately $125,000 annually. Grants, membership dues and contributions make up the majority of our funding. If you'd like to help, please consider becoming a member or making a donation. The LSCA is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization and any contribution that you make is tax deductible.

Hello LSC! We got in the 9th Annual Boat Parade, right before the rain started. Thank you to all who participated, and to those who cheered from their boat and the shore. We hope you enjoyed it!

Now it's time to hear from you. You can vote for your favorite boats in our four categories: Best Overall, Funniest, Most Patriotic, Most Original.

Vote here: https://forms.gle/wgoAnYLenXJ2LNvN7

Voting will be open until 8 PM, with the winners announced soon after.

Thank you to all! Have a safe and fun 4th.

Hello LSC.

We are aware of the recent reports of unsafe boating incidents around the lake.

We have invited our Game Warden Justin Turner for a Meet & Greet to talk about lake safety and to answer your questions.

Please join us at the Wells Lakeside Park at 9 AM on Saturday, July 10th.

Thank you!

We'd like to invite you to the 2021 Lake St. Catherine Association Annual Meeting & Dinner at the Lake St. Catherine Country Club on Saturday, July 24th, beginning at 6 PM.

The LSCA Trustees will update you on lake issues, give you reports from their committees, and discuss current and future initiatives for the lake. The meeting will conclude with an open question and answer session.

We are looking forward to seeing you!

At approximately 7:30, dinner will be served. If you'd like to stay for dinner, the LSC CC has provided the menu below.

Dinner options:

• $18.00 per person: Buffet Dinner to include Chicken Francaise, Baked Haddock, and sides.
• $30.00 per person: Prime Rib Dinner.

- Includes cake and coffee.

Please RSVP for the meeting so the chef can be prepared for the number of meals to prepare by clicking here to register. You will be able to indicate the selection of dinner(s) you'd like to reserve. You can pay online with a credit card or with cash at the door. Paying online adds $1 to each dinner to cover transaction fees. Thank you. Please email us at info@lakestcatherine.org with any questions.

Click here to RSVP!

Good afternoon LSC.

We'd like to share some drone photos and video of the Little Lake that were taken on 6/23/21, the morning after the milfoil treatment. A sincere THANK YOU to VT Lake House for taking these photos for us.

These photos show us both the beauty of Little Lake and the dense milfoil cover under the surface.

In late August, we'll revisit these areas with the drone to see the effect of the milfoil treatment from this arial perspective. We'll also have a 1 month survey performed in mid-July, and there will be a comprehensive, lake-wide aquatic plant survey that will take place in September (you can view the past 17 aquatic plant survey reports by visiting our website's Links & Downloads section. We'll share these reports with you as soon as they are available.

We also hope that you are helping to do your part as well. 

We recently posted "What You Can Do To Help Stop The Spread Of Milfoil" which outlines the best practices that you can follow to help to stop the spread. You can view that here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/10670190

If we are all pitching in, we can make our lake-wide milfoil control efforts a success.

To view the full set of photos and the video, please click here to go to the Google Drive folder, Drone Photos - 6-23-2021.

Thank you!

On Saturday, June 26th, the Lake St. Catherine Association held their second meeting of the 2021 season. Meeting minutes compiled by Jerremy Jones.

Attendance: Jim Canders, Nancy Liberatore, John Belvavis, Ed Laird, Mary Jo Teetor, Jerremy Jones, Frank Callahan, Bob Williams, Elaine Bagley, Martha Pofit, Ken Abt (online), Jeff Crandall (online). Absent: Rob Nesbit, Kemi McShane.

Call to Order: President Jim Canders called the meeting to order at 8:05 AM.

Previous meeting minutes approved. 

Annual Meeting, John: LSC CC can offer the same dinners as 2019 meeting, a buffet selection of chicken or fish with sides or a prime rib dinner. Jerremy will start working on the presentation, setting up RSVPs through the website. 

Greeters, John: Program running well, Greeters doing a great job at boat launch and State Park. Greeters went around Little Lake for the Stop The Spread handout. Will also cover the rest of the lake.

Milfoil Control, Jeff: Got the F&W Greeter permit for the boat launch, one is not needed at the State Park. DASH - 92 acres, will start July 1st for full operations, currently hand-pulling. ProcellaCOR treatment occurred on June 22nd in Halls Bay, and in Little Lake.

Little Lake Meeting, Jerremy: Meeting on June 19 at Wells Lakeside Park. Members of LSCCF, LSCA, Wells Select Board, and members of the lake community attended. We detailed the 3 year plan and discussed the Stop The Spread handout. The meeting was mostly positive, then veered off of that positivity when the Q&A started. We did receive some nice feedback from some attendees. Jim offered a motion for $425 to cover the cost of the handouts, approved. Also discussed was a meeting called by the Wells Select Board on June 23rd, attended by Jim, Frank, and Jerremy. Members of the LSCCF were also in attendance. Topics discussed: the 3-year Little Lake milfoil control program, and the working relationship between the WSB, LSCA, and LSCCF.

Treasurer’s Report, Elaine: Financial report presented and approved. To date, 341 members. Donations coming in from happy users of the lake. 990 filed, motion to pay preparer, approved. Elaine summarized closure and setup of new accounts as was discussed last meeting.

Water Quality, Mary Jo: Lay monitoring taking place as usual. Will contact town to order E. coli testing kits. 

Publicity, Jerremy: discussed recent coverage of the award of the watershed action grant in local papers, recent community volunteer events, website and Facebook always updated with latest lake and LSCA news. 

Lake Safety, Frank: 2 upcoming boating license classes, many reservations for both, might add a third, TBD. Buoys and markers out, the one in Halls Bay went missing soon after it was placed. More have been ordered. Discussed reports of unsafe boating, extend an invite to our Game Warden to speak at annual meeting.

Grants, Martha: discussed kickoff of Lake Wise, LCBP’s State of the Lake report, and clean water funding, the Watershed Action Plan.

Nominating, Bob: 4 open spots, 1 to be appointed, 3 for election at annual meeting. Idea to create ‘Wanted’ posters to be used as ice-breakers to speak with residents about joining the LSCA. Current Trustees will canvas their areas to speak with potential candidates. Jerremy will create the poster and email to Trustees. 

New Business: Sign up for East Poultney Day? Yes, Jerremy will get us signed up. Wells Variety Day, per Nora at Wells Town Hall, will not be happening. 

Motion for adjournment, approved.

Hello LSC.

We'd like to take a moment to thank our 2021 Business Sponsors:

	Merritt Environmental Consulting Environmental consulting and oil tank services. Phone: (718) 344-0768 Email: cgm@merrittec.com		Lake St. Catherine Cottages Cottage Rentals 70 West Lake Road Phone: (802) 773-0100 Phone: (802) 645-0093
	Lake St. Catherine Country Club Golfing, Pro Shop, Bar & Grill Dinner Specials Fri & Sat Phone: (802) 287-9341 Email: lsccc@comcast.net		Lake Hill Compost LSC's local food scrap collection and composting service. Phone: (518) 955-0466 Email: gregobrienvt@gmail.com
	Williams Hardware Hardware, Housewares, Paint, Lumber, Rentals & More Since 1946 Phone: (802) 287-5791 Email: williamshardware@truevalue.net		VT Lakehouse Experience amazing lakefront views Daily and weekly rentals available FB: https://fb.me/vtlakehouse Email: info@vt-lakehouse.com
	New England Lakeside Realty Helping Families Find Their New Homes In Vermont's Lakes Region Phone: (802) 645-9001 Email: vtlakeside@comcast.net		Woodard Marine Boating, Service, Rentals Located on Lake Bomoseen. Phone: (802) 265-3690 Email: info@woodardmarine.com
	Lakes & Homes Real Estate Offering years of expertise in Rutland County Phone: (802) 671-8042 Email: lakesandhomesre@gmail.com		Haun Welding Supply Household Propane and Cylinder Gas Delivery Phone: (518) 743-8944 Email: glensfalls@thehaunedge.com

All have made a $200 contribution to the Lake St. Catherine Association for the 2021 season - thank you for your support!

You can find them listed on the Sponsors page our our website, and they are listed in our Spring and Fall newsletters.

If your business would like to be a Business Sponsor, you can fill out our online membership form here: Become A Member, or you can print and mail in this 2021 Membership Form.

Thanks again to our 2021 Business Sponsors - and all who have contributed this season to help us fulfill our mission to preserve, protect and maintain Lake St. Catherine.

Good morning LSC.

The milfoil treatment was successfully applied yesterday.

Recreational and household use can resume today. Using the lake water for irrigation can resume next Tuesday.

Our DASH crew has started hand-pulling, and will begin full DASH operations on July 1st.

To view the DASH and ProcellaCOR areas, please click here to view the map.

Now, we are asking you to help make these efforts a success by following these best practices to stop the spread of milfoil:

1. As a general rule, get as much milfoil out of the lake as possible. Let it dry out on land and dispose of it as you would yard waste.
2. Don’t drive through milfoil patches with your boat which will create fragments which can float away and seed new plants.
3. If you have milfoil on your prop, don’t just reverse and drive away, please remove it from the lake.
4. If you have milfoil growing in your dock or swimming area, pull it out by the roots and remove it from the lake.
5. If you see milfoil floating anywhere in the lake, near your dock, or along your shoreline, remove it from the lake.
6. Obey boating regulations by travelling at no-wake, 5 MPH speeds within 200’ of the shoreline.

Little Lake specific tips:

1. We ask that you voluntarily avoid boating through the untreated and unharvested area of section H.
2. Please use the navigation channels that will be created by the combination of the treatment and harvesting - indicated by the green arrows in the image below.

Please check out our "Stop The Spread Of Milfoil" flyer for more detailed information.

If we are all pitching in, we can collectively make a huge impact - please speak to your neighbors and help to get the word out.

Let's do this!

Thank you.