Holiday weekend features membership drive

Memorial Day weekend starts the LLPOA summer season, which begins with the 2016 membership drive. Association dues are $25 again this year. With your membership you will receive a “Clean, Drain and Dry” sign to place on your dock or boat. This is the association’s way of bringing attention to the drive to stop the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) on Lone Lake and all lakes in Minnesota.  Thanks to Bev Napurski (LLPOA Board director) who produced the signs.

We also want to thank the small but determined road clean up group that met on a cold and windy Saturday, May 7 to clean the environment around Lone Lake. The hardy group had coffee and rolls, took a group picture and then got right to the road clean up. They were…..and we thank them for their dedication! They could use a few more volunteers this fall and next year, too.

ACLARA (Aitkin County Lakes and Rivers Association) held its annual DNR AIS Boat Inspection Training and Certification session at the Hazelton Township Hall on May 21. Walt and Dianne Weisser from our lake association organized and hosted the event. Boat inspectors must take the in-person AIS training every three years and an on-line refresher course in the intervening years. The online course with videos help boat inspectors stay current with best practices to prevent the spread of AIS. I personally did the review on-line as I was certified in 2014 and the six short videos were great and very informative. Linda Szymanski is our AIS Coordinator and is doing a great job facilitating the county inspectors and our own team of lake ambassadors. We are making some changes in our AIS Inspection Program and look for that report here. Please step-up and get certified as a volunteer and help in the fight to stop the spread of AIS and specifically on Lone Lake!

Finally, we have proclaimed this year to be the year of the Monarch butterfly. If you have milkweed on your property, do not cut them down or run them over. If you don’t have milkweed, plant then! We will be featuring the Monarch butterfly at our annual meeting with a guest speaker and also distributing milkweed seeds to plant in the fall. In the meantime, take pictures of butterflies for our Lake Association Butterfly Picture Contest also to be held at the annual meeting.

Thanks you for your support of the LLPOA and we’ll see you on the lake!
Steve Frazier, LLPOA President

Summer is almost here

Hi Lone Lakers,

What a beautiful spring it has been on Lone Lake to kick-off our summer season with our families and with the Lone Lake Association. The ice went off the lake on March 30th and last weekend you cannot believe how many docks and boats were already in the water. We even got our own dock in last weekend, which is a record! There is a lot to share with you so let’s get at it.

This year of 2016 is the year of the Monarch Butterfly on Lone Lake. We will be giving out Milk Weed packets with memberships to help the struggling Monarch population in the USA. We will also have our Annual Meeting Program center around the Monarch theme with a speaker and a photo/art contest of best Monarch shots and art using Milk Weed pods.

Our regular calendar of events starts on May 6th with Boat inspections using DNR Inspectors. Save May 14th on your calendar to join the Spring Road Clean-up at 9AM at the Public Beach. We’ll have coffee and rolls, a group picture and then take-off to our cleaning areas. Thanks to everyone that helps us keep the environment around Lone Lake pristine!

Thank you for your cooperation on the beaver issue and we have now suspended that effort and the Board will discuss more humane ways of dealing with nature’s effects on water flowage out of Lone Lake.

Our next big push will be the Memorial Day Weekend with both Boat Inspections and the Spring Membership Drive. Our second newsletter will come out just be for then to add additional detail to upcoming events.

Thank you for your support of the Lone Lake Association and we urge you to get involved in as many of the association’s activities that you can this summer.

We’ll talk again later, Steve Frazier, LLPOA President.

Good-bye to summer, say hello to fall events

What an incredible summer it has been on Lone Lake and a great year for our lake association!

The LLPOA’s Annual Pot Luck and Meeting held on July 25 was a wonderful success.  More than 70 people attended. The weather was perfect, the food was delicious, the Audubon Center of the North Woods’ presentation was memorable—especially the porcupine—and we took care of lake association updates and business. Re-elected to the board were Steve Frazier as president, Karen Frazier as treasurer, Jennifer O’Neill as communications director, and Bev Napurski as web site and social media director. Unfortunately, we did not have a candidate to be the association secretary and we have an open director position. If you can serve, please contact Steve Frazier at sfrazier@usjet.net so the board of directors can fill open positions at its September 12th meeting.

Annual meeting attendees also received an AIS Plastic Dock Poster to remind boaters to clean, drain and dry their boats to prevent the spread of zebra mussels and other exotic species. LLPOA membership is well over 100 and if you want your AIS Poster and roster please get your membership dues of $25 to the LLPOA, P.O. Box 10, Aitkin, MN 56431. All members also will receive their Lone Lake Association membership roster to be distributed by LLPOA membership committee members this fall.

In other news, a Lake Outlet Committee was formed to deal with issues relating to lake levels, outlet drainage, and obstruction removal. There is room on the committee for a couple more lake residents, if you wish to participate. The committee’s first action was to replace the culvert that was partially blocked between Lone Lake’s outlet and Ripple Lake. LLPOA shared the cost of the project. My thanks to everyone that took part.

This Labor Day weekend you may notice AIS Boat Inspections volunteers at the public launch. For our lake’s part in the Aitkin County Boat Inspection Grant Program, we need to either pay or supply volunteer boat inspectors for 25% of the grant requirement.  This weekend is our final inspection weekend to attain our hours of inspection to fulfill our grant obligations. Become an AIS Inspector and do your part in protecting Lone Lake.

Our final event of the year will be the Fall Road Clean-up on Saturday, Sept. 12 at the swimming beach at 9 a.m.  We will have hot coffee, rolls, a photo-op and then divide into cleaning teams.  It is a fun and easy way to keep our lake area beautiful and to meet and talk with neighbors from around the lake.  Thank you for your membership and support of our lake association as we strive to enhance, protect and preserve the beauty of Lone Lake for the future.

We’ll talk again later, Steve Frazier, LLPOA President.

Culvert Repairs

A Lake Outlet Committee was formed to deal with issues relating to lake levels, outlet drainage, and obstruction removal. There is room on the committee for a couple more lake residents, if you wish to participate. The committee’s first action was to replace the culvert that was  partially blocked between Lone Lake’s outlet and Ripple Lake. LLPOA shared the cost of the project. To the satisfaction of property owners, Aitkin County and the lake association, repaired the culvert between Lone and Ripple Lakes. Project was completed in August 2015.

Annual Meeting Ahead

Annual meeting ahead: Is it time for you to step up?

The next big association event is the LLPOA Annual Meeting & Pot Luck on Sat., July 25 at the Preiner’s storage facility, 30353 Oak St. starting with games and set-up at 10:45 a.m.  We truly hope you will come and enjoy a few hours with friends, and cast your vote on board business and elections.

Up for election this year are all officers and two director positions.  The current officers that have indicated that they will serve another term are Steve Frazier – President, Karen Frazier-Treasurer, Jennifer O’Neill-Communications, and Bev Napurski-Director & Website/Social Media.  However, we are currently without a secretary and have one open director position.

This is a great time to step forward.

The secretary participates in board meetings and events, takes meeting notes (usually five meetings per year), and keeps the association’s historical records.  The person serving in a director’s position takes part in board meetings, shares in tasks that are not covered by team leaders, and attends association events. Please contact sfrazier@usjet.net to place your name in nomination as we all work to preserve and protect Lone Lake for the future!

We’ll talk again later, Steve Frazier, LLPOA President.

Loon update for 2015

Note July 12 from Dianne and Walt Weisser, Lone Lake loon watchers, and keepers of the loon nest platform:

“Not sure if you were aware, but Humphreys called to say the loons had been off the nest a couple of days.  He said they left on Saturday, which was the week before the 4th.  Bob and Bert Kosloski went by pontoon and saw eggs shells and a small dead baby chick, very tiny.  The following day Walt called the DNR.  Walt and Bob went back and removed the nest.  The egg shells were gone, but they retrieved what appeared to be the tiny chick.  We froze it and Walt dropped it off at the DNR.  Will wait to see if they are able to get any viable samples from the chick that may determine what happened.”

Stand up for Butterflies

A monarch caterpillar sits on a milkweed plant. | GARY FRIEDMAN FILE PHOTO

We all know and love the beautiful orange and black monarch butterfly.  This pretty insect, actually Minnesota’s state butterfly, is dying off.  In the immediate term, eliminate pesticide use (including the purchase of bedding plants and annuals treated with pesticides/herbicides) and plant milkweed—monarch caterpillars must have it for food.  Also, check out EPA’s risk assessment and opportunity to comment—due July 24, 2015.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-06-24/html/2015-15405.htm

Aquatic Invasive Species Update

With grant more boats get aquatic hitchhiker checks

By Linda Szymanski, AIS Team Leader

This has been an interesting and innovative year for Lone Lake and the AIS Inspection Program.  Here are some of the highlights:

1. Lone Lake qualified for a grant from the county to conduct AIS inspections each weekend from the Fishing Opener through Labor Day.  Our one qualifying event is Lone Lake needed to conduct 25% of the county time though in-kind inspections.  Since we already have an inspection program on holiday weekends, this was an achievable task.  The program is going well and owners have commented on the great job the inspectors are doing at the access.  We eagerly wait on statistics from the results of these inspections and will share the results as soon as they become available.

2. For Memorial Weekend, AIS coverage was 92.9% versus 64.3% last year.  Weather the Monday or Memorial Weekend was rained out and there was so little activity on the lake that day, we pulled the inspectors on Monday.  Even with pulling inspectors, the team conducted 31 inspections versus 30 the previous year.

3. The July 4th weekend was wonderful and the AIS team did a great job.  Coverage for the weekend was 80%, with only two open shifts.  Last year the lake hired an intern to cover on the 4th and this year the county covered this shift.  The team conducted 81 inspections versus 99 inspections last year.  This is a result of the holiday calendar shift.

4. In July Lone Lake will be participating in a Veliger testing program along with nine other Lakes in the county.  Veliger’s are the larval form of zebra mussels.  This is an early sampling program to test if lakes may be infested with zebra mussels.

5. We still have three open shifts on Labor Day weekend, two on Saturday and one on Sunday.  We are looking for volunteers to fill these slots.  Contact Linda Szymanski at ljsatthecabin@msn.com if you are willing to volunteer.

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Meet Tanner

Tanner Sachse is one of the DNR-certified inspectors hired by Aitkin County whose job it is to inform boaters about aquatic invasive species and what boaters must do to clean, dry and drain their craft to prevent its spread.  Tanner, 18, son of Diane and Rick Sachse, has spent many of his summers with his family on Lone Lake.

A 2015 Moundsview High School graduate, he heads to Montana State in the fall, where he plans to major in Mechanical Engineering. Tanner says doing boat inspections “is going to make a difference.  When you see someone checking their boat, they are more conscientious. I like keeping our lake clean for fishing and stuff.”

How to improve Lone’s fishery?

How to improve Lone’s fishery? Keep shoreline natural

By Marty Cook

A few years ago, my wife and I had the good fortune to be relocated to England for a couple of years.  While we were gone, nobody did anything to our shoreline and nature had a chance to take back our shoreline along the lake.  When I got home permanently, I was horrified to see how the shoreline had changed.  No longer was it the nice riprap rocks melting into soft pure sands.  In their place were willow trees growing out of the lake, lots and lots of decaying materials washing against the rocks and the branches…well, you get the picture…nature had made a valiant attempt to reclaim our shoreline!

So what did I do?  I set about reclaiming my nice neat little beach and dock area.  I pulled out all the growing things, cleaned out all the natural debris and made it look nice again.  While I was doing my cleanup, I couldn’t help but notice the myriad of little creatures that occupied the space.  There were small fish, frogs, crawdads, dragonfly larvae and LOTS of other squiggly things and bugs within two feet of shore.  Go down there today and, guess what…..they’re all gone….simply because I took away their natural habitat.  I tell you this not to provide an opportunity for public flogging but rather to let you know that I think in our quest for a nice pristine shoreline, we’re doing our non-human fellow inhabitants a large disservice.   Without the proper habitat, there’s no place for these food chain dependent creatures to go….and with THEM, go the fish of all species.

I recently visited with the local DNR and got an update on the latest fish survey done June 15-18.  I reported about it in the last newsletter.  You can read all about what they found in that newsletter, but here’s the gist of it.  Since the mid 80’s our fish population has been on the decline…all species…bass, pan fish, crappies, walleyes and northern pike.  Although not so easy to detect, the graph on the next page shows the story.

So what can be done about it?  Well, there are a number of things that can be done, but one of the biggest things we can do is to restore the shorelines to their more natural state…or simply let Mother Nature do it for us…albeit it will take longer.

Jack Skrypek, retired DNR Fisheries chief puts it this way, “I believe that one of the primary reasons that fishing has declined on many lakes is because of alterations to lakeshore habitat by shoreline property owners.”  Shoreline habitat is essential to a strong and vibrant ecosystem in a lake.  Native vegetation, bottom materials, and natural debris play essential roles in the lifecycles of fish and other shoreline wildlife.  Shoreline alterations can damage or destroy these habitat components (just like my uneducated actions did) and sever essential strands in the ecosystem web.  As a result, the ecosystem is weakened, wildlife move elsewhere and fish populations decline.

Here are a few tips for preserving (and perhaps even improving?) Lone Lake’s fish and wildlife populations:

Share the Beach:  If you have 100’ of shoreline, consider reverting 75’ back to its natural condition (or let it go wild on its own) while keeping 25’ for boats, dock and swimming areas.

Provide Buffer Strips: You can have a nice yard/lawn and still keep the lake populations flourishing by restoring the last 30 feet or so down to the lake in natural grasses, shrubs and native trees.  You can still have a nice lawn near your house or cabin while providing habitat for songbirds, ducks, butterflies and other wildlife.

Leave Fallen Trees:  Sometimes called “Coarse Woody Habitat,” such habitat is important to fish and wildlife…especially fish.  The wood provides a place for algae production that is a food source for many invertebrate creatures needed in the food chain AND (get this) it provides a natural filtering system for cleaner water!  It also provides cover for spawning and younger juvenile fish.  Ask any fisherperson if they can catch fish around fallen trees and stumps….and they’ll all give you a resounding YES!   Such debris also provides a natural barrier to wind and rain erosion that dumps many unwanted chemicals into our lake.  Wave action and boat wakes stir up sediment, causing the lake water to become murky.  If sunlight cannot penetrate the cloudy water, many healthy and vibrant lakes can begin to become less desirable…..and as you know…our water quality is one of the most attractive features of Lone Lake!

Watch Out for Washouts and Sand Deposits:  NATURAL bottom material, called substrate, is used by all the elements of the food chain and ecosystem.  Changing it by adding sand or other non-natural elements WILL decrease fish populations.  Walleyes use natural rocky, gravel shorelines for breeding and spawning.  If unnatural debris washes into the lake, then these breeding grounds and nurseries WILL disappear…..and the fish will too. Fix washouts right away…and don’t add sand to the bottom.

Understand and Protect the Watershed:  Lone Lake is a basin that collects water from the surrounding landscape that is called a watershed.  Pollutants and eroding soil can easily end up in our lake.  For Lone Lake to stay healthy we all have to be aware and concerned about what is happening to the watershed around us.  Logging, farming, livestock grazing and development can affect our lake’s watershed.  Our lake association works hard to protect our watershed.  When degrading activities occur we need to call upon all the resources at our disposal to find a good solution that allows growth in our region and also protects our watershed.  Keep a keen eye on what’s going on around your part of the lake and watershed and if you’re in doubt, call the DNR or talk to one of your representatives on the Lone Lake Property Owners Association.

Every two years the DNR adds almost 500 pounds (496 pounds to be exact) of walleye fry and fingerlings to Lone Lake.  Yet, the population does not increase.  Could it be, at least to some degree, due to what we’ve unintentionally done to the lake?  For me, I KNOW I did damage to the lake when I cleaned out what mother nature put there to keep the ecosystem in balance and productive.  It won’t happen again on my property!  Sorry mother nature…my bad!

Did you know?

Did you know? In Minnesota is it illegal to:

• Transport watercraft without the drain plug removed.

• Arrive at lake access with drain plug in place.

• Transport aquatic plants, zebra mussels, or other prohibited species, whether dead or alive.

• Launch watercraft with prohibited species attached.

• Transport water from Minnesota lakes or rivers.

• Release live bait into the water.

All DNR-trained watercraft inspectors stationed around the state are authorized to help ensure boats and trailers are clean and free of AIS before entering or leaving a lake, river or other body of water. Whether they work for the DNR, or for a county or other local unit of government, inspectors are there to help make sure boaters are not in violation of AIS laws and protect our lakes and rivers.