For the preservation, protection, and maintenance of Lake St. Catherine
Thank you to everyone who joined us this past Wednesday evening for the Stormwater Master Plan update meeting.
Fitzgerald Environmental Associates presented a number designs for stormwater mitigation projects in areas all around the lake. These projects were designed using $50k in funds earned by the LSCA and PMNRCD via a Lake Champlain Basin Program grant.
Potential project areas included:
You can learn more about the Lake St. Catherine Stormwater Master Plan on our website: https://lakestcatherine.org/stormwater-master-plan - including the SWMP report, and the designs for the projects presented on Wednesday.
Next steps will include working with landowners on agreements, and applying for grants for implementation.
You can view a recording of the presentation on YouTube here.
Hello LSC.
We'd like to invite you to the 2025 Lake St. Catherine Association's Annual Meeting & Dinner at the Lake St. Catherine Country Club on Saturday, July 26th, 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, then we'll have a nice dinner together with our lake neighbors.
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:
Dinners include a vegetable, salad, potato, and dinner roll. Cake and coffee will be served for dessert.
Please RSVP for the meeting by clicking here to register:
https://lakestcatherine.org/event-6244367/Registration
You will be able to indicate the selection of dinner(s) you'd like to reserve. If you'd like to attend the meeting, but not stay for dinner, leave the dinner selection fields blank. You can pay online with a credit card or with cash at the door.
> You must RSVP for a dinner by Sunday, July 20th so the Country Club can properly prepare. We'll not be able to take walk-ins for dinner.
Please plan on arriving a bit before 6 PM so you can get checked in and be seated so we can begin the presentation as close to 6 as possible.
80 dinners are available. Dinners sold out last year, so please RSVP as soon as possible.
Thank you!
We are very excited to share with you the completed draft of the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan - and we'd like your feedback before it's submitted on June 30th.
This project was a MASSIVE, multi-year undertaking, and the Lake St. Catherine Association would like to thank our partners and everyone who contributed, including:
Thank you all for your contributions to this effort for the lake!
Below you'll find a link to the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan draft report and associated documents, and the link to the recording of the presentation from the June 4th meeting for your review.
Meeting Recording: https://youtu.be/Diy-bsg-qg4
LWAP Draft & documents: View the folder here.
We hope that you can take some time to review the presentation and the draft, and provide any feedback you may have before we submit the final report on June 30th.
Please send your feedback, comments, or questions to us at info@lakestcatherine.org.
Help to protect our valuable natural resource - Lake St. Catherine - through conscious decision making by participating in the Lake Wise program!
You can read more about the Lake Wise Program here: https://lakestcatherine.org/lake-wise-program
Lake Wise was developed through the Vermont DEC and is meant to provide technical assistance for shoreline landowners looking to incorporate lake friendly living practices on their properties. The Lake Wise assessment focuses on four portions of your property; driveway, structure, recreation area, and shoreline. The follow-up report gives recommendations on which stormwater management practices would be best for your property and the lake.
As a shoreline property owner, you have the access and the ability to control what is happening directly at the water's edge.
While small-scale improvements on individual properties may not seem like they have much impact, collectively the implementation of many small projects will have a positive benefit on the water quality in the lake and the surrounding watershed. Larger watershed projects are also being worked on (The LSC Stormwater Master Plan, The LSC Watershed Action Plan).
Actions now will promote a healthy lake environment that will continue to support swimming, fishing, boating, and wildlife viewing in the future.
Over the past 6 years, over 100 properties have participated in the Lake Wise Program on LSC, and 29 property owners have earned the Lake Wise Award. You can read all about all the great work that your fellow lakeshore property owners and our partner the Poultney Mettowee Natural Resource Conservation District (PMNRCD) put into the 2024 program here: https://lakestcatherine.org/blog/13442577
Three property owners on the lake earned the Lake Wise Award in 2024, and we'll be sharing photos of the winners and their properties soon.
Jaden from PMNRCD did a fantastic job in 2024, and we're excited that she'll be coordinating the program again in 2025!
If you would like to participate in Lake Wise this season, spots are limited, so please email us at info@lakestcatherine.org to get signed up! If you have previously participated in Lake Wise and would like a follow-up assessment, please let us know.
Lake Wise is a *FREE* program for lakeshore property owners. The 2025 Lake Wise Program on LSC is funded through a Clean Water Small Implementation Grant grant earned by the LSCA from the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) and NEIWPCC.
For the second year in a row, our nesting loons have been successful, gracing the lake with another adorable loon chick!
As noted and reported by Dawn Smith-Pliner around noon time yesterday, one of the 2 loon eggs hatched, and a loon chick has been spotted with its parents - see the photo taken yesterday by LSC photographer extraordinaire Karen Velsor.
The parents are still tending to another egg at the nest - so we'll see if another chick emerges.
Thanks for sharing your wonderful photography Karen!
More photos can be found in the Lake St. Catherine - Vermont Facebook Group.
The Vermont DEC will be at Lake St. Catherine on Monday, June 23rd and Tuesday, June 24th to perform tests as a follow up on the discovery of the half zebra mussel shell in the late fall of 2024, which you can read about here.
This testing is part of an invasive crustacean and mollusk distribution project supported by the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP).
They will perform the following tests over these 2 days around the Fish & Wildlife Access Area boat launch in Wells, and at the State Park launch in Poultney:
We thank the DEC and LCBP for their efforts in support of Lake St. Catherine!
We all need to be vigilant when dealing with aquatic invasive species (AIS) that could potentially infest the lake. This is why our Greeter and Vermont Invasive Patroller (VIP) Programs are so important.
Our Greeters inspect boats for AIS as they enter and exit the lake, but we only have enough funding and personnel to cover the public access on Friday - Sunday from Labor Day to Memorial Day, along with holidays and fishing tournaments. Also, boats and other vessels can be launched at other areas around the lake. It is critically important to “Clean, Drain, Dry” vessels and equipment that will be going into the water to prevent the spread of AIS.
The VIP Program paddles areas where vessels would be launched, like at the public access, at the State Park, and at Wells Lakeside Park using underwater viewers to look for potential new introductions of AIS. This program is an early warning system for finding new AIS that have made their way into the lake so they can be quickly addressed.
The VIP Program is a volunteer initiative. If you like paddling, and would like to learn more about the lake, please reach out to let us know you’d be interested in participating at info@lakestcatherine.org. You can learn more about the Vermont Invasive Patroller (VIP) Program on LSC here.
What can you do to help protect the lake from AIS? Become a member of the LSCA, volunteer, keep an eye on your shoreline and be sure to Clean, Drain, Dry any vessel coming in contact with the lake.
Hello LSC - We'd like to let you know that the 13th Annual LSCA Boat Parade has been scheduled and is open for registration!
The 13th Annual LSCA Boat Parade will be on Saturday, July 5th at 1 PM.
We all know how fun it is to watch the boat parade, but it's even more fun to be part of it!
As we did last year, we'll take photos of all participants, and we'll have a lake-wide online vote to decide the winner.
Our categories are:
If you'd like to register your boat, please email us at info@lakestcatherine.org with your name, phone number, and boat name or theme. We'll get you signed up and will reply back with your boat number, and give you all the details on how to participate.
Our 12th Annual Boat Parade winners, and current reigning champions are:
Most Patriotic:
Winner, Most Patriotic: Boat #11 - God Bless America!! - Dave & Lisa
Funniest:
Winner, Funniest: Boat #5 - Dump Run! - Conine Family
Most Original:
Winner, Most Original: Boat #7 - Carnival - Hicks Family
Best Overall:
Winner, Best Overall: Boat #9 - Come On Barbie Let's Go Party - Christine Gay
[ All photos by Karen Velsor - thanks Karen! ]
So, start thinking about your theme, and mark your calendars for July 5th! Then, email us at info@lakestcatherine.org to register your boat.
Also, lake resident Kevin Mosmen has requested that we inform you of his Independence Day Fireworks display the evening of Friday, July 4th. Kevin is taking over the show from long-time producer Rick Roberts, and has set up a GoFundMe for the show, which you can read about by clicking here.
It's going to be a fun day!
Hello LSC, we have some very exciting news to share with you today.
We are very happy to report that we've just been informed by the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) that we've earned a grant to purchase water testing equipment for the lake!
This $13,206 grant will allow us to purchase:
One of each of the in-lake Loggers will be installed in all 3 basins (Lily Pond, Big Lake, Little Lake) and they will take constant & continuous readings for Dissolved Oxygen, Conductivity (salt stress), and temperature. The hand-held unit will allow us to do spot testing for Dissolved Oxygen, Conductivity, pH, and Turbidity. The macroinvertebrate testing materials will allow us to monitor macroinvertebrates at our tributaries. We also plan to have a macroinvertebrate educational event this season.
We'll be working with our limnologist to select the best locations for the in-lake loggers and she'll also create a testing routine with locations for monitoring with the hand-held unit. She'll also analyze and report on the collected data, incorporating other available data generated through the Lay Monitoring Program and LaRosa steam monitoring.
We will be submitting our workplan soon, and once approved, we can purchase the equipment to begin the project.
The attached image is a slide from our presentation last evening about the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan.
Thank you to all who attended, we hope you found the presentation interesting and informative!
A recording of the presentation and a draft copy of the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Action Plan report will be posted next week for your review. We'll be collecting your comments and feedback over the next several weeks before we submit the final report at the end of the month.
Hello LSC, attached you will see the Milfoil Control Map for 2025.
Our DASH team (Beck and his crew) have been in the water this past week to dive at the milfoil areas identified during the fall survey. Beck reported that they observed some new sparse growth in areas, and some denser growth around the Sunken Island. They will start hand-pulling next week, and full DASH operations will begin on July 1st.
The team also performed a survey of the boat launch area for zebra mussels on Friday. Back in November, the Vermont DEC found a single, half shell next to the dock at the boat launch. You can read all about that here: Zebra Mussel Shell Found At Public Access. We are very happy to report that they did not find any zebra mussels during the dive.
It is extremely important to Clean, Drain, Dry any vessel coming in contact with the lake to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS). The LSCA's Greeters will be inspecting boats at the launch this season Friday - Sunday, holidays, and during fishing tournaments.
If you have any questions or comments, please email us at info@lakestcatherine.org. Than you!
Good evening LSC. Here are some photos from today's event at the Wells Village Library to debut the Lake St. Catherine Watershed Model.
Poultney artist Nic Stark kicked off the event by discussion how the model was made. Nic chronicled the creation of the model with photos and video which you can see here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/2kTTWK12EQNDjh778
Then we discussed animals around the lake like our loons & eagles. We then used the model to demonstrate erosion and stormwater runoff carrying sediments, phosphorus, and pollutants into the lake, and talked about how we can prevent that. This led to a great discussion about lots of other lake related topics!
We then all enjoyed cake, cookies, and refreshments created by The Flour Girl Bakery.
Thank you to all our attendees - we hope you had a great time, thank you to Nic for his presentation, and thank you to Gina for this wonderful event at the Library!
You can check out additional photos and video in this Facebook Gallery.
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