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Tom Hall Joins LGLC Board


Diamond Point resident Tom Hall is the newest member of the Lake George Land Conservancy’s Board of Directors.

The Lake George Land Conservancy (LGLC) has announced that Diamond Point resident Tom Hall is the newest member of its Board of Directors. Mr. Hall joins the Board with extensive environmental and management experience, as well as a deep local connection to the lake.

LGLC Executive Director Jamie Brown said, “We are thrilled that Tom has agreed to join our Board. His passion for Lake George, the outdoors, and the environment are a perfect fit for LGLC. Tom’s experience working at the DEC will provide a helpful perspective on our efforts to protect the special places around the lake.”

Mr. Hall said, “I am excited by the good work the Lake George Land Conservancy does, and am looking forward to the opportunity to put my skills and experience to work to advance the mission and objectives of the organization.”

Mr. Hall retired from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) nearly 5 years ago after a 33 year career in public service that focused on environmental protection. At retirement, he held the position of Special Assistant/Assistant Regional Director for NYS DEC Region 5 – an eight-county upstate area approximately the size of the State of Vermont that includes most of the Adirondack Park and all of the Lake George watershed.

During his tenure with DEC, Mr. Hall was involved with implementing NYS’s Freshwater Wetlands Law, an important but controversial regulatory program that set the stage for protecting NYS wetland resources; managed environmental permitting as an Environmental Analyst and Permit Administrator; was responsible for the oversight and management of NYS DEC’s environmental permitting program within NYS DEC Region 5 as Regional Permit Administrator; and, as Assistant Regional Director, served as a NYS representative to the Lake Champlain Basin Program, administratively managed the Warrensburg DEC office and oversaw the Regional Legal Affairs Office. He also served as a Lake George Park Commissioner for a number of years.

Since retiring from public service, Mr. Hall has worked part-time as a Regulatory Specialist for AECOM and currently holds the same title with VHB Engineering & Planning. Both are private sector engineering and environmental planning firms with local offices in the Albany area.

Mr. Hall is President of the Board of Trustees of the Hillview Free Library in Diamond Point, Treasurer of the Town of Bolton Local Development Corporation, on the Board of Directors of Norowal Marina, Inc. and on the Board of Directors of the Lake George Music Festival.

Mr. Hall and his wife, Lydia, live in Diamond Piont, and their two adult children also live locally.

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LGA Assists Park Commission On Lakewide Asian Clam Survey

Three staff members from the Lake George Association – and two summer outreach interns – participated in four of the six days of the most recent Lakewide Survey for Asian Clams.

The program, in which participants sampled sandy sediment at about 200 sites on shoreline areas of Lake George looking for the invasive species, is directed by the Lake George Park Commission.

Education Director Kristen Rohne participated on three separate days, LGA Educator Jill Trunko participated on two separate days, and Communications Director Patrick Dowd participated on two separate days.

The Lake George Association commits significant resources each year on its own and in partnerships with other organizations to control and prevent the spread of aquatic and terrestrial invasive species in Lake George’s watershed. Because invasive species have no natural predators or external control, they out-compete native species for resources, growing and spreading until they completely take over an area. Those actions present a serious threat to the water quality of Lake George – and protecting Lake George’s water is the primary mission of the Lake George Association.

Education and spread prevention are the most cost-effective ways to control invasive species on Lake George, and the LGA has significant investment in both. The LGA’s broad focus on both aquatic and terrestrial invasive species aims to keep the Lake and its watershed healthy into the next century.

For results of this year’s Lakewide Survey for Asian Clams, please visit the Lake George Park Commission’s website here.

(Update: I mistakenly linked to the 2014 report originally. The link has now been updated to link to the correct 2015 report.)

The Post Star has a video of the search process on YouTube.

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The Ride of My Life


The interior of a classic 1978 Taylor SJ jet propelled boat.

Recently, I was fortunate enough to be taken for a ride in a 500 HP 1978 Taylor SJ jet propelled boat. It belongs to some guests of ours and, even after all these years, has only approximately 20 hours on the engine.

The owner told me he only takes it out every few years for a couple of days at a time. The rest of the time, he keeps it locked away in storage.


The boat’s throttle is actually a “gas” pedal on the floor.

We took the boat out in the early evening when the lake was flat. You’re only a few inches above the water, which I tried to capture in the picture below.


The boat has an extremely low center of gravity, sitting just inches above the water.

As we started to speed up, not having a windshield added to the overall experience of the ride. The rooster tail, which is caused by the jet pump, was impressive indeed. As we passed some island campers, we were greeted by claps and cheers.


The jet pump’s rooster tail was impressive indeed.

I was holding on for my life at this point. Although, my host told me he was always below the speed limit! After only about 5 minutes, what is left of my hair was curled up from my forehead straight back. We returned to the dock, where I was able to look at the engine.


The engine was an impressive 500 HP.

All in all, it was one of the most impressive rides I have ever taken on Lake George. The boat has now gone away for another couple of years, but I wanted to share my experience and pictures with the readers of the Huletts Current.

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An Interesting Sight

I was out for a boat ride last night, and came upon this tree which had its bark eaten away at its base.

(Click to view larger scale.)

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Video: LGA’s Walt Lender Speaks to FHHL on July 30th

Walt Lender, the Executive Director of the Lake George Association, began the Friends of Historic Huletts Landing (FHHL) Summer Lecture Series on Thursday, July 30th at the Mountain Grove Memorial Church.

For those unable to make it, the video has been posted online. Remember this was the day that the power was out in Huletts Landing for nine hours, so parts of the video are a bit dark.

Many thanks again to Mr. Lender for coming out and speaking in Huletts.

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Froehlich Foundation Grants LGA $378,700 Toward Lake Preservation

The Helen V. Froehlich Foundation has granted the Lake George Association $378,700, offering significant resources toward continuing the LGA’s work to preserve and protect Lake George water and educate for the future.

“For the twenty-second year, the Froehlich Foundation’s support will allow the Lake George Association to perform those critical in-the-ground projects that protect Lake George water, and to educate students and visitors about how they can protect Lake George,” said C. Walter Lender, executive director of the Lake George Association. “In some cases, the money that the LGA invests in projects is used to fulfill matching grant requirements for municipalities – grants that ensure projects to protect Lake George water are able to be completed.”

This grant award will provide $157,700 toward Lake-Saving Projects, $51,000 toward education and outreach programs, and $170,000 toward lake quality programs, including invasive species management, land use management and outreach into local communities and geographic information systems (GIS).

Two of those Lake-Saving Projects are:

• Rainbow Beach Stormwater Redirection: A small watershed in the Town of Bolton drains about 1,000 feet of roadway in a developed area adjacent to the Lake. Partnering with Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District as well as the Town of Bolton, the project will include the installation of a bio-retention swale large enough to capture all of the stormwater runoff and the re-grading and repaving of the road to direct stormwater into the swale. The goal is to redirect the stormwater away from the Lake, allow the stormwater to filter into the ground, and stop further erosion.

• Foster Brook Stabilization: A comprehensive engineering study on Foster Brook in Huletts Landing, severely damaged by Tropical Storm Irene, shows several bank locations that are in critical need of stabilizing. Once final designs are complete, the project should stabilize up to 150 feet of streambank.

The LGA’s popular Floating Classroom program was awarded $25,000 to continue its program of broadening people’s understanding of the Lake, its watershed and related environmental issues. While the Floating Classroom is a popular educational trip for schools in the watershed, the public Floating Classroom program during the summer helps any attendee understand that their decisions can negatively affect the Lake’s water quality and encourages them to protect the water and the watershed.

Other Education and Lake Quality programs being funded by the Froehlich Foundation grant include:

• Revising, expanding and updating our popular “Lake-Friendly Living” guide, which offers simple strategies for property owners so they can create sustainable lakeshores and landscapes that protect Lake George. The current guide is available for download at www.LakeGeorgeAssociation.org under “Lake-Friendly Living.”

• Beginning an “Adopt a Storm Drain Program,” starting with the Town and Village of Lake George. Working with Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District – which is geo-locating all of the storm drains in the town and village – the LGA will seek “parents” of those drains to keep them clean of garbage and debris throughout the year. Water from those storm drains flows directly into the Lake, along with whatever debris might have made it through the storm grates.

• Investing in training and updated equipment for Towns around the Lake to cut back on salt application now and work to develop future strategies to cut back on the amount being placed on our roads throughout the watershed. “With these resources, we can continue our mission as guardian of Lake George water, and continue our 130 years of service to the Lake,” said Lender.

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LGA’s Walt Lender to Speak Thursday July 30th in Huletts

Walter Lender, the Executive Director of the Lake George Association, will begin the Friends of Historic Huletts Landing (FHHL) Summer Lecture Series on Thursday, July 30th at 7:30 pm at the Mountain Grove Memorial Church.

He will speak on the LGA’s current ongoing projects and initiatives.

Please join the Friends of Historic Huletts Landing for this interesting and engaging talk!

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LGPC’s Recreation Study

The Lake George Park Commission is conducting a Recreation Study during the summer of 2015. The Town of Dresden has posted the LGPC’s flyer about this on their website.

The LGPC is looking for people on the lake who want to share their recreational experience. They will be able to use their Smart phone to instantly take the survey or they can go to the Park Commission website.

The Commission is seeking all visitors and those who do not have to register their boats – kayakers, sailboats, parasailers, rental boaters, etc. to fill out a survey.

Those with registered docks and boats will get their survey via email in August.

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Fishing in the Rain


Photo entitled: “Lake George Fishing in the Rain,” submitted by Deacon Brian Murphy of Bloomfield NJ. (Click image to see full-scale. Copyright: Brian Murphy)

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Painters at Work

Over the weekend, I ran into two artists painting scenes of Lake George. While one was a bit more experienced than the other, I tried to take a photo of their “canvas” and the actual scene they were painting. What a great way to spend a summer day. (Click images to see full-scale.)

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Anne Diggory – Look TV Interview

Ticket sales are going very well for the Anne Diggory event on Thursday, so if you haven’t gotten tickets yet, you’ll want to soon.

Here is Anne on Look TV, where at about minute 7, she mentions the Thursday event.