Subject: lake water test sites
Jon & Ashley,
Let's start by reviewing the
four
sites we viewed on our trip:
1. Exit from Flint Lake at
Calumet
(insurance company parking lot).
2. Exit of Heinold Ditch and
western drainage ditch from two huge pipes on south side of
Burlington Beach Road. We noted soap bubbles in the western
drainage ditch. Bryant and I returned there and he took samples.
3. Culvert running under Burlington
Beach Road from Flint Lake School.
4. Water running under Valparaiso
Street in pipe from Silver Lake running toward the Heinold Ditch near K
Mart.
To appreciate the directions below,
please get out your big map. Regarding Lake access, I will start
from the North and head south:
Moss Lake - Did you
see the email I sent to John Thorstad? Moss Lake is situated on
the Camp Lawrence property. Call Mr. or Mrs. John Thorstad before
going there. They will welcome your visit and sampling but like a call
first to 462-5261. Take Calumet north (old 49) to Rd 700. Head west to
Camp Lawrence. Drive down the hill to see Moss Lake.
Wauhob Lake- Has two
or three easy access points for testing from the shore and one very
good for launching a boat of any type at Bonnie's WeeSaw Ranch.
Row boats are also rented there at a reasonable cost. Take Road
700 'til you see Wauhob. Turn south down the hill toward the lake and
make a right heading west. At the very end you will see her boat
rental and bait shop. Either Bonnie or Mike De St. Jean (see
below) will help if needed.
Round Lake - If you
want a mini adventure which will make you feel like you're in a wet
land jungle this trip will provide it. There is a narrow channel
that can be navigated by canoe or row boat from Wauhob. Head south in
Wauhob, hugging the west side until you see a channel through the
swamp. Hang a right and paddle or push your boat toward the west
through the channel.
Silver Dollar Lake- This
tiny "lake" can only be accessed by walking on frozen wetlands
during the very coldest weather. Let me know if you're crazy enough to
want to try it some time. I doubt you can get there even with hip
boots in the spring or summer. Nobody goes there but me.
Deep Lake - Take
Calumet to Edgewater Beach Road. Head west, wind around curves, make a
right on 600, make a left on West Long Lake Road. Head north almost to
the end and, as you're driving north with Long Lake on your right, you
will see a small, private pond then a small lake on your
left. There may be a fence or a lot of vegetation blocking easy
access to that lake. Call Jim Rowe at 464-9610 or 219-313-6157
for easy access to that little lake. He, his wife Dawn, or his
mother (462-9738) should grant easy permission and instructions to
access Deep. Another contact for that (and several other lakes)
which need to be toured and sampled by boat is a Mr. Mike De
St.Jean. Mike is a fisherman, active with our group and may have
another boat on Deep. His ph # is 464-9227. Mike will probably be
willing to take you on any of the lakes by boat if you catch him when
he wants to go fishin' which is always.
Long Lake- There are
at least 5 or 10 easy spots with access to Long. It is, indeed, the
longest of the lakes and has many differing habitats. As you are
following the directions above, you will pass the major public access
site to Long. It is about half way up the distance of the lake as you
head north from road 600. It is very well marked with DNR signs
and has a parking lot and a boat ramp which you are always welcome to
use 24/7. Though many of our friends and members have homes and
frontage for boat access, I assume that public access will serve that
purpose. For sampling from the shore, we know
many people who have frontage who will welcome your call and grant
permission for testing. They include Jay Costas (462-0602 or
464-2565), Bonnie Swarner (464-9810), Phil Doolittle (464-1785),
and Mrs. Joanne Webb. Mrs. Webb lives on the "Island" on East Long Lake
Road. To get permission and directions to her home you can call
her or her son, Warren, at 465-7549, or 462-3018. Warren is
the treasurer of our group and owns a small business on Long Lake
Island also.
Canada Lake (actually
north of Long) - To access Canada by Land, call Jay Costas.
Getting there by boat will be much more fun, however. Head north almost
to the very end of Long Lake. Note there will be a
small island or two (not the same one Webbs live on) on your
right. Watch for a major break in the vegetation (water lilies)
on your right and head east on the channel. Kayak, row boat,
canoe, speed boats (10 mph max), even house boats can make it through
the channel. Turn left at the first intersection, head north to
Canada. Phil Doolittle, Jim Rowe, Mike De St. Jean could all live
nearby, are nice guys, and can help you get there.
I hope to provide detail of access to
Flint, Spectacle, Loomis, Silver, and Mink all of which will be easier
and less exciting. I suspect only Silver and Flint will require special
phone numbers.
You might wish to compose a brief
explanation to attach to our existing fliers to hand to any property
owners who are curious about what you are doing.
Please try to reserve Mar 21st 6:30 PM
to attend our Chain of Lakes meeting to describe your water
quality and pollution testing plans to our board if
possible.
- breitin@verizon.net
Keith Letta, Porter County
Health Dept.
Hi Keith,
Our watershed group is partnering with
a V.U. chemistry student, Ashley Coulter (under the guidance of
Professor Jon Shoer), to test and monitor the Valpo Lakes this spring
and summer to establish baseline data on water quality and
pollutants. We'd like to request a copy of the historical
and latest data on E coli and any other pathogens or contaminants your
department may have tested for. We hope to share, compare, and
contrast any data she is able to collect and publish.
We are aware that you have tested
several of the beaches on a regular basis and that, at the request of
Phil Doolittle, additional testing has been done at Long Lake. We are
especially curious to learn about any regimens, protocols,
specific sampling sites, etc. that you are willing to describe.
Would you, for example, suggest that Ashley attempt to expand on the
data you have collected by doing additional tests at those sites or
would you suggest other locations ? Any and all data you can send
us will be greatly appreciated. If you mail it to my postal
address (below), I will deliver it to the V.U. Chemistry Department.
Walt Breitinger, President, Valparaiso
Chain of Lakes Watershed Group