The blizzard Vulcan is hitting Huletts hard. (Click image to see full-scale.)
Here is a picture taken from the HLPOCA’s beach at 2:30 this afternoon. About 8 – 9 inches of snow has fallen as of 5:00 p.m. Where-oh-where is Spring?
Can You Say: “Bitter Cold”
A screen shot of the temperature in Huletts at 6:30 am on March 4th.
That’s right – March 4th! I grabbed this because this would be a new record low for this date. According to weather.com, the previous record low on March 4th was -5 degrees. This winter certainly has been a cold one. If you’re some place warm, consider staying there a little longer.
LGA Celebrates Read Across America Day
The Lake George Association’s Executive Director, Walt Lender, reads to second graders at St. Mary’s School in Ticonderoga.
Today, March 3, 2014, is the NEA’s Read Across America Day, which celebrates Dr. Seuss’s birthday and the joys of reading, More than 45 million readers, both young and old, are expected to pick up a book and read today.
LGA’s Executive Director Walt Lender put aside his director’s hat for a bit this morning to don the ultimate reading hat, the red and white striped stovepipe made famous by the Cat in the Hat. To help celebrate the sixteenth annual celebration of reading and Dr. Seuss’s 110th birthday Lender began the day by reading to the second graders at St. Mary’s School in Ticonderoga. The class was well prepared and excited for his arrival – with their ‘Cat in the Hat’ hats all on.
Lender read a book about watersheds titled ‘Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean’ that teaches children about how water shapes the earth and why it is important to keep our water clean. After he was done reading, they had a lively discussion about Lake George and how special it is. The timing was great too, as the class will be starting to learn about the water cycle in coming weeks. “I’m just glad to have had the chance to read to the kids this morning. Their energy and excitement and interest in learning are a big part of why we do what we do at the LGA. We want to protect the Lake for them – so they can enjoy it years from now,” said Lender.
Lake George Park Commission Spring Newsletter
Click image to read newsletter.
Name-The-View Fundraiser for Berry Pond
You could win the right to “name-the-view” in the Lake George Land Conservancy’s (LGLC) fundraiser. (Click image to see full-scale.)
The public is invited to participate in the Lake George Land Conservancy’s (LGLC) Name-The-View drawing, a fundraiser for the Berry Pond Preserve in Lake George.
One drawing winner will be given the right to name the view from Berry Pond’s northern overlook, and will also receive a catered picnic for eight on Dome Island, complete with transportation and tour of the island. The drawing will take place this summer at LGLC’s Annual Meeting on July 17th.
In 2008 the Lake George Land Conservancy took on $2.654 million of debt to purchase the 1,435-acre Berry Pond tract and protect it from further development. This purchase represents LGLC’s commitment to the West Brook Conservation Initiative, an agreement between three Lake George environmental agencies, the Village of Lake George and Warren County, working together to protect the lake from polluted West Brook inflow in Lake George Village.
LGLC’s Executive Director Nancy Williams, explains, “Berry Pond has become a beloved recreational asset for hiking and winter use to residents and visitors to Lake George. It is a vital link for snowmobilers between Warren and Washington County. The LGLC purchased the land in order to provide for these recreational uses and to stop development on the mountain, an event that would have delivered more nutrients and sediments into Lake George.”
Berry Pond includes high peaks overlooking Lake George and provides spectacular views of the Narrows and Rattlesnake Cobble. The tract is home to the headwaters of West Brook, and three tributaries cross the Berry Pond tract to flow into West Brook as it passes through Gaslight Village and into Lake George.
To enter the drawing and for more information visit: www.GoFundMe.com/Berry-Pond-Lake-George. A donation is not required to enter the drawing, but is encouraged.
It’s Not Warm and Sunny
The golf course covered in snow.
If you’re looking for some place warm and sunny, it’s definitely not that in Huletts right now.
Frozen
Frozen ice along Route 22 to Whitehall.
I took this picture on Friday in route to Whitehall. The ice had a blue tint to it which I found interesting. (Click image to see full-scale.)
Good Rules to Remember
Lake George Winter Carnival Begins
Margot Kapusinski stands in front of an ice sculpture at the 53rd annual Lake George Winter Carnival. The Carnival opened this past weekend and runs every Saturday & Sunday in February.
Denton Publications reviews it here.
The official website is: http://www.lakegeorgewintercarnival.com/
LGA Awarded Grant for Stormwater Mitigation Project at Mossy Point Boat Launch
The Mossy Point Boat Launch in Ticonderoga (DEC Photo).
The Lake George Association is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a $15,000 Pollution Prevention grant from the Lake Champlain Basin Program for Stormwater Mitigation at Mossy Point Boat Launch on the northern end of Lake George in Ticonderoga. The project will retrofit the 3.5 acre boat launch area/ parking lot and try to capture and treat stormwater runoff that is currently entering the lake untreated using several different filtering methods including; a vegetated swale, rain gardens, infiltration beds and porous pavers. Matching funds for the project will be provided for by the LGA through the Helen V. Froehlich Foundation and by the NYSDEC.
In the summer of 2012, the Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District (WCSWCD) was asked by the Town of Ticonderoga to complete a town wide stormwater outfall assessment. Included in the assessment was the 3.5-acre Mossy Point boat launch site that is comprised of approximately 30% pavement and 70% compacted cinder stone dust. The final report identified the Mossy Point boat launch area as a priority project listing the numerous solutions to capture the flow from the site that is carrying sediments, road salt and other pollutants.
The Mossy Point Boat Launch as seen from above in Google Earth.
“We are pleased to have received funding to implement this project which includes the solutions outlined in the report as well as final design work, project oversight and the use of porous pavers,” said Randy Rath, LGA’s Project Manager. “We will work this spring and summer to survey the site, take elevations, and create the final design. Construction is tentatively scheduled for late summer/early fall. We will be working with Warren County Soil and Water and the DEC on this project moving forward, but if it wasn’t for the Town of Ticonderoga having the stormwater assessment done, we wouldn’t have been able to get this all pulled together so quickly. It is just another example that goes to show how important our partnerships really are for protecting the Lake.”
The initial concept calls for a long vegetated swale along the side of the roadway entrance to the launch that would direct runoff into a rain garden or bio-retention area. Additional rain gardens and a berm will also be used to create infiltration beds. Plantings will consist of native vegetation. The plan also includes the use of porous pavers for approximately 2000 square feet of the boat launch area. “Besides being an important stormwater mitigation project, we also hope to be able to take advantage of the public nature of the site to provide education as well, said the LGA’s outreach coordinator Emily DeBolt. “Since the project will incorporate multiple green infrastructure practices, it will be a great chance for some educational signage. This isn’t part of the grant, but we hope to be able to work on this aspect after the project is done.”
Lake George Park Commission Meeting: Tuesday January 28th
This month’s meeting of the Lake George Park Commission is looking like an important one, with a vote on the Proposed Aquatic Invasive Species Regulations.
Winter Pictures
Mackenzie (left) and Riley (right) Stoutenburg enjoy Saturday’s beautiful weather.
Monday brought more snow.
Photos courtesy of Gavin Stoutenburg.
Click on both images to see full-scale.
LGA Receives Funding from Shumway Foundation
The LGA’s Floating Classroom as seen off of Huletts Landing in 2011.
The Lake George Association is pleased to announce that it has received $10,000 from the Helen and Ritter Shumway Foundation. The foundation was created from the estate of the late Helen Shumway to support conservation efforts. Facilitated by Jack Murphy at Bank of America, a manager of the Foundation, the funding will help support the LGA’s Floating Classroom program as well as Asian Clam management efforts.
The Floating Classroom is central to the mission of the Lake George Association, and a core element of its educational program. The program was originally conceived in 1990 as a means to provide a stirring, enlightening experience to area school children and to help them develop a stewardship interest in the Lake George ecosystem. The program has since grown and today has even expanded to include family groups and tourists in the summer season. The LGA’s Floating Classroom provides a unique hands-on experience for participants to learn about Lake George and how they can help protect it for the future. 2,228 people took part in the Floating Classroom program in 2013, over half of which were students on field trips in the spring and fall.
“We are so happy that we are able to offer the program for groups in the summer in addition to our usual school field trips. This new funding from the Shumway Foundation will help us be able to continue those programs,” said LGA’s Education Coordinator Kristen Rohne. “Everyone who goes out on the boat tells us how amazed they are with what they learn. For many people, this is the first and only time they will get to catch plankton and look at them under a microscope or use a secchi disk to measure water clarity,” said Rohne.
Asian clams were first found in Lake George in the fall of 2010 off Lake Avenue Beach in Lake George Village. Management efforts to kill the clams began right away in the spring of 2011, however unfortunately it has since spread to additional locations around the Lake. As of the most recent lake-wide survey completed this past September the clams have been found in 13 locations around the Lake. “The LGA and many partners have been working hard to keep this highly invasive species under control but its amazing reproductive capabilities seem to be keeping the clams one step ahead,” said LGA’s Executive Director Walt Lender. “We are continuing to work to better understand how the clams reproduce and spread, and then hope to use this information to better inform our future management efforts. Our experience with Asian clam illustrates how important education and prevention really are and why programs like the LGA’s Floating Classroom and Lake Stewards are so critical. We are very grateful to the Shumway Foundation for supporting these important programs.”
Winter Pictures
Looking out toward Burgess and Nobles Islands from this past weekend.
(Click to see full-scale.)
Picture of the outside temperature as displayed on Jim Biondo’s dashboard as he arrived in Huletts at about 8:00 pm this past Friday night.