Good afternoon LSC.

Thanks to our volunteers & participants today for the Vermont Invasive Patroller (VIP) paddle at the boat launch area of the Lake St. Catherine State Park this morning. This was the 2nd VIP paddle this season.

We patrolled the launch area looking for potential introductions of aquatic invasive species (AIS), and to learn about our native plants that are in that area.

Among others, we found illinois pondweed, robbins pondweed, ribbonleaf pondweed, big-leaved pondweed, eelgrass, and the very interesting seven-angled pipewort (and a few sparse milfoil plants). Check out the attached underwater photos of these plants, what appear to be some heron footprints in the sand, and some photos of our participants.

Alice took some great underwater photos with the GoPro, had lots of great questions, and we looked up plants in the book Aquatic Flora of Northern New England by Donald J. Padgett.

This weekend, we'll file a VIP report about the paddle with the DEC via their online reporting form.

Thanks to Heather and Alice for participating - we hope you had fun!

If anyone is interested in participating in a VIP paddle in early October at the Wells Lakeside Park, please get in touch here on Facebook or at info@lakestcatherine.org. If we have enough interest, we'll schedule one final paddle for the season.

You can learn more about VIP Paddles here on our website: https://lakestcatherine.org/vermont-invasive-patrollers

Facebook Photo Gallery:

Hello there LSC, we have some fun loon related news to share.

In recognition of the tremendous support we've received from loon biologist Eric Hanson and staff from the Vermont Center for EcoStudies (VCE) for Lake St. Catherine's loons, the LSCA has made another donation to VCE.

Eric has travelled to Lake St. Catherine numerous times over the past several years in support of our increasing loon visits.

Most recently, Eric was here in May for the Libraries Love Lakes Spring Event at the Wells Lakeside Park. He was able to canoe over to the nesting loons to observe them, and he provided a report and a presentation to attendees. You can read more about that here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13362265

Eric was also here in April, and we assisted in the construction and placement of a loon nesting raft. As we all know, the loons found their own nesting area, and successfully hatched 2 chicks in June. You can read more about that here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13340050

Last May, he came to LSC to observe a pair of loons (now mom & dad loon) that had exhibited nesting activity in the Channel. Although they ultimately did not build a nest, Eric knew they would be back to try again - and he was right! You can read about his May visit here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13207383.

Last August, VCE also provided a collection tube that we installed at the boat launch in Wells to collect lead tackle and old fishing line, both deadly to loons. You can read more about that here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13235860

Eric was also at LSC twice in July of 2022 to participate in the first Libraries Love Lakes event, and to present at our Annual Meeting & Dinner. At that Annual Meeting, Eric gave a fantastic presentation about loons, which was recorded - and you can view that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUrY1PqirzU.

In 2021, Eric also rescued a sub-adult loon on Lake St. Catherine that had been caught up with a lure and fishing line. You can read about that here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/12107471.

We were very happy to receive this nice note from Laura at VCE thanking the LSCA and our members for the donation, and inviting members to a special conversation with Eric about loons - this Monday, September 23rd - and we'd like to share it with you:

"Thanks to you, Vermont’s loons are truly thriving. Not only did the number of nesting pairs increase from 108 last year to 123 this summer, but they also called 11 new territories home!

These tremendous successes showcase the impact of your generosity and dedication. Thank you for supporting loon conservation research, field work, network building, volunteer coordination, and public outreach, and helping us meet our $50,000 matching requirement of this year’s portion of our five-year U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service loon repopulation grant.

I’m delighted to invite you to an exclusive Loon Zoom for 2024 Vermont Loon Conservation Project supporters on Monday, September 23 from 7 to 8 p.m. You’ll get to ask VCE Loon Biologist Eric Hanson your most pressing loon questions and hear the latest loon news and stories."

This is a great opportunity to learn more about Vermont's loons, Eric always gives a fantastic presentation, and we're pretty sure he'll talk about LSC's new loon chick!

To participate, registration is required. 

Click HERE to register.

We hope to see you there!

Good morning LSC. We are planning a VIP (Vermont Invasive Patrollers) Paddle next Saturday, September 21st, beginning at 9 AM at the boat launch area at the State Park in Poultney.

We'll paddle & patrol this launch area (where new invasives are likely to be introduced) looking for aquatic invasive species (AIS).

We'll have underwater viewers to be able to look at the lake bottom, we'll do a patrol, and then we'll report our findings to the DEC.

So, if you like to paddle, would like to learn more about LSC's aquatic plants, and would like to be part of an early warning system for detecting invasive species in LSC, please reach out to us at info@lakestcatherine.org to let us know you'd like to participate on September 21st - and we'll see you there!

You can read a recap of our first 2024 paddle here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13390025

...and you can read more about the VIP Program on LSC here: https://lakestcatherine.org/vermont-invasive-patrollers

Thanks!

On Saturday, August 24th, the Lake St. Catherine Association held their fourth and final meeting of the 2024 season.

Attendance: Jim Canders, Mark Shea, Sue Williams, Mike Gay, Mary Jo Teetor, Jerremy Jones, Jeff Crandall, Lisa Micich. Absent: Kemi McShane, Frank Callahan, Ed Laird, Bob Williams, Nancy Liberatore.

Guests: Beck Sinclair

Call to Order: President Jim Canders called the meeting to order at 8:35.

Public Comment: None.

DASH Update: Beck Sinclair provided a report on his DASH work for the season. DASH ended on August 20th. DASH boat needs a new suction motor. Beck will source. Motion made to allocate up to $3,500 to purchase the new motor. All in favor, so moved. Beck also provided his thoughts for areas to address in 2025. He noted low milfoil conditions around the lake at the end of the season. Also noted that we need a new banner for the boat. Jerremy was given the old one to reproduce.

Approval of Meeting Minutes: Minutes of July 27, 2024 posted. Motion to accept the minutes as presented. All in favor, so moved.

Treasurer’s Report: Mary Jo Teetor presented her report, looking to be even for 2024 with expenses and income. MJ also mentioned progress on our grants, spoke about new VT labor laws, and our 990. There was a brief discussion on a dues increase. Motion to accept the report as presented. All in favor, so moved.

Annual Membership Meeting: A brief discussion about the annual meeting. The presentation ended on-time, the food and service was excellent, and the meeting was well attended, including all of our state senators and representatives, and the Wells Select Board. 

Milfoil Management: Jeff Crandall gave a recap of the Milfoil Control Program for the year. We could not extend the DASH time due to the boat issue. Our permit application is still under review.

Greeter Program: Jerremy Jones presented information provided by John Belnavis. 906 inspections at this time, lower than last year. John mentioned that there are some fishing tournaments after Labor Day. A motion was made to extend the Greeter Program to cover the tournaments after Labor Day. All in favor, so moved. Jerremy will let John know.

Water Quality and Testing: Mary Jo Teetor talked about Lay Monitoring for the season. Discussion of the sediment testing that was conducted the day before. Also discussed runoff issue on West Lake Road, and a septic issue on Channel Drive.

Publicity: Jerremy Jones discussed East Poultney Day, and the fall newsletter.

Lake Safety: Mike Gay talked about new wiring hardware for the buoys, fixing the Rock buoy, and getting ready for next year. Quick discussion about possibility of putting solar lights on top of the buoys.

Nominating Committee: We now have 2 open spots on the board. Discussion of possible candidates.

Membership: Jerremy Jones, 370 members as of today.

Government Relations / Grants: Jerremy Jones, excellent participation at the annual meeting with state and local reps. Discussed Lake Wise, LLL, water testing grants, AIS grants.

Old Business: None.

New Business: Jerremy Jones, discussed attending the LSCCF's annual meeting.

Officer Elections: Jim Canders asked for nominations for President, Vice-President, and Treasurer. Jim Canders, Mike Gay, and Mary Jo Teetor were all nominated respectively, all in favor, so moved.

2025 Meetings:

• May 24, 2025
• June 28, 2025
• July 26, 2025, Annual Meeting that evening
• August 23, 2025

Motion to adjourn meeting at 10:15, all in favor, so moved.

Respectfully submitted, Jerremy Jones

Hello LSC, we'd like to share the DASH team's end of season report with you.

Beck and his DASH team began swimming sparse milfoil areas in late June, and were able to hand-pull and clear some of those areas before full DASH operations began on July 1st.

Referencing the attached map, they worked in areas C, D, E (Sandy Bay only), H, H1, I1, I2, I3, and K. The team estimated that they could have worked for 3 more days in area K (Idylwild Bay), but suction motor issues cut that short. We'll need to source and install a new motor on the DASH boat for the 2025 season.

The team collected 269 17.5 gallon buckets of milfoil this season. Last season, they collected 1,057.

Beck reported the team's observations from their work around the lake this season noting that our native plants are looking healthy, and milfoil was at low growth levels - which is great news, and indicative of the lower bucket total this year as compared to last.

Our DASH and Greeter Programs are funded through Vermont's Aquatic Nuisance Control Grant-In-Aid Program, and membership dues and contributions from the lake community. Thank you for your continued support of the LSCA and these important programs.

The LSCA's yearly aquatic plant survey is also underway, with Arrowwood Environmental beginning their work last week. Their report to us will be available in the late fall, and will be posted to our website.

Please join us in thanking Beck and his crew for another great season working to keep milfoil under control at Lake St. Catherine! 

It was a cool science day on LSC!

Earlier today, members from the Vermont DEC, our limnologist, and Trustees of the LSCA boated to the deepest area on the lake and took a deep core sediment sample.

The sample was then divided up into smaller samples (cookies), and prepped to ship off to two different labs for testing.

One lab will date the samples, and the other will perform a taxonomy of the diatoms in the samples.

This will give us an idea of how the lake has processed phosphorus in the past and will inform future phosphorus reduction goals that would be part of the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan (https://lakestcatherine.org/lsc-watershed-action-plan).

You can read more about diatoms here: https://diatoms.org/what-are-diatoms

• Diatoms are algae with silica cell walls
• Diatoms produce 20-30% of the air we breathe
• Diatoms produce long-chain fatty acids, and these molecules are food for the entire food web, from zooplankton to aquatic insects to fish.
• Diatoms are particular about the quality of water in which they live, so they are vital for assessment and monitoring biotic condition of waters.

Thank you to all involved for helping to make this happen, including the lake community for donating food shipping containers and freezer packs so the samples could be properly shipped to the labs!

We'll post about the data when it becomes available.

The Fall 2024 Newsletter is here!

A short run of printed copies of the newsletter are available at Wellsmere Farm in Wells, and the Cones Point General Store / Cluckin' Cafe in Poultney. If you'd like a printed copy, please feel free to pick one up when you are out and about (available now!). Thank you to Michelle and Nicole for having them available!

Also, your LSCA Trustee neighbors will have printed copies available around the lake over the weekend, so stop in to say hi.

The digital version is now available online via our website through this link: Click here to view the Fall 2025 Newsletter, or click on the image below. When you click on the link for the newsletter, you will be able to view it on screen - and be able to zoom in or out using the controls in your browser window. Or, you can click the download button to save a copy to your computer to view with a PDF reader, and/or print a copy.

Good morning LSC - we wanted to post a quick update to thank our volunteers: Donna, Mary, Lisa, and Gloria - for joining us for the first VIP Paddle of the season.

The VIP program was established by the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in 2007 to focus on early detection of all known and potential aquatic invasive species (AIS) before they can become established in a waterbody.

At 9 AM on Saturday, we met at the boat launch in Wells to perform a Vermont Invasive Patrollers paddle to look for invasive species.

We did not discover any new invasive species, but we did see examples of existing invasives: eurasian watermilfoil, curly-leaf pondweed, and some purple loosestrife on the shoreline.

We also observed and identified a number of our native plants like american eel grass, pickerel weed, robbins pondweed, illinois pondweed, ribbon-leaf pondweed, and broad-leaf pondweed, among others.

We'll fill out and submit a VIP report for this paddle to the DEC this week. We are also planning for another paddle in late August / early September that will take place near the State Park. If you'd be interested in participating, let us know!

You can read more about the VIP Program here on our website: https://lakestcatherine.org/vermont-invasive-patrollers

Thanks to our volunteers - we hope you enjoyed the paddle!

On Saturday, July 27th, the Lake St. Catherine Association held their third meeting of the 2024 season.

Attendance: John Belnavis, Mark Shea, Mary Jo Teetor, Lisa Micich, Jim Canders, Kemi McShane, Frank Callahan, Jerremy Jones, Mike Gay (call in), Ed Laird. Absent: Jeff Crandall, Sue Williams, Bob Williams, Nancy Liberatore, Rob Nesbit

Guests: None

Call to Order: President Jim Canders called the meeting to order at 8:37.

Public Comment: None.

Approval of Meeting Minutes: Minutes of June 22, 2024 posted. Motion to accept the minutes as presented. All in favor, so moved.

Treasurer’s Report: Mary Jo Teetor presented income, expenses, and anticipated costs for DASH, Arrowwood and Greeter Program. A foreign transaction fee in account, Jerremy will look into. Motion to accept the Treasurer’s report. All in favor, so moved.

Annual Membership Meeting: John Belnavis. Meeting is this evening at the CC. Discussion of setup for the meeting & dinner. John made a motion for an allocation of $275 for the facility fee. All in favor, so moved. Mary Jo will take care of checks for facility fee and dinners paid for on the LSCA to the CC.

Milfoil Management: Jerremy Jones. Discussion of LL, and treatment in northern end, detached plants being caught in topped-out pond weed in middle to eastern shore. Ed mentioned Lake George court decision. Discussed new permit and probable public meeting. Discussed Arrowwood estimate and contract, Jerremy will ask Arrowwood for COI.

Greeter Program: John Belnavis. John said 630 boats greeted so far, and he recounted a discussion with Kim J from DEC asking that we work on installing a wash station.

Water Quality and Testing: Mary Jo Teetor. No sign of bacteria or cyano. The lake looks clean, but geese are very active this year. Discussion of the loons.

Publicity: Jerremy Jones. Good recent coverage in the FreePress, and a FOVLAP update.

Lake Safety: Frank Callahan & Mike Gay. New buoys placed at Sunken Island. Discussion of adding additional reflective tape.

Nominating Committee: Jim and other members have not heard from Bob. We’ll have 2 vacancies on the board after the annual meeting.

Membership: Jerremy Jones. To date there are 360 LSCA members. The membership goal is to reach 400. A reminder postcard was sent. $71k in dues & donations so far.

Government Relations: Jerremy Jones. Our 3 state senators, 1 state representative, and all members of the Wells Select Board were invited and will be attending the annual meeting.

Grants: Hilary S from PMNRCD will be attending the annual meeting and speaking about 2 grants, LWAP and SWMP project development.

Old Business: LSCA to participate in East Poultney Day, August 10th, Jerremy, Jim and Frank to work the booth. Jerremy will leave briefly to attend LSCCF meeting. Formal approval of the DASH expense that was discussed over email.

New Business: LSCA sponsored a Wells teen for the new Junior Warden program. Discussion about dues collection and the bylaws.

Motion to adjourn meeting at 10:08, all in favor, so moved.

The board remained to review the slide presentation prepared for the Annual Meeting.

Respectfully submitted, Kemi McShane

Good morning LSC.

A big THANK YOU to the tremendous group we had at the Lake St. Catherine Country Club Saturday evening for the LSCA's Annual Meeting & Dinner. It was great to see so many of you who care so much about LSC. We had a full house!

We hope you enjoyed the presentation, your meal, and your evening with your lake neighbors. Thank you all for your interest in the preservation, protection and maintenance of Lake St. Catherine.

We'd also like to thank the Lake St. Catherine Country Club staff for their wonderful service and the excellent dinner. 

Finally, thank you to Hilary Solomon from PMNRCD for the update on the LSC Watershed Action plan, and the LSC Stormwater Master Plan, and to all of our invited guests, and the lake community for your interest!

Check out a Photo Gallery from the evening.

Here is our slide presentation:

Here is a recording of the meeting via YouTube: