Neighbors and Lone Lake friends gathered Saturday morning, July 30 to install willow wattle and native, lakeside plantings on the shore of the Prell cabin (lot 19). (Look carefully to see the vertical wooden stakes which hold in the "mesh" of willow saplings that were gathered, tied together, and brought to the lake edge.)
Why? With our changing water levels and changes in use of the lake, more and continued effort is needed to keep our lake from regressing any further on the “declining” list of Aitkin County lakes.
During the past two plus years, the overall Secchi disc numbers are trending down. While we have better water quality than many other area lakes, looking at numbers, you will be “seeing” less of the lake bottom as time goes on.
That lake bottom needs to be undisturbed as much as possible. With various equipment now available for fun, the closer you are to the bottom of the lake, the more the items lying there (including lost fishing rods, anchors, and the like) move around. (Research now suggests keeping 25' under a boat, deeper than the previously suggested 17'.)
The movement near the bottom releases the phosphorus that comes with decaying leaves and other dead materials. All of this clouds up the beautifully clear waters of Lone Lake. (Some of this is just nature, we can’t prevent all leaves from falling in the lake.)
What can you do?
Keep your shore on the shore.
Maintain a minimum 6 foot natural barrier of native plant growth next to the water’s edge. (Weeds count!)
Use willow wattle, coir logs, rocks, downed trees or other natural items to hold back the lakeshore from the waves created by wind and boats.
When boating, keep bigger boats to the middle of the lake, even small boats need to lower their speed when near the shore.
Grass clippings or leaf collection near the shoreline need to be taken away from the lake as far as you can. (Ask your lawn maintenance people if that is happening for your property.) Thanks to the residents who have made that effort this year.
Do your part. Every little bit counts.
charts that were available at annual meeting
Paper copies of the chart above were available at the annual meeting in July. Please take the time to look at both photos (2 sided form) to learn more about lakes in the area and understand why your property is especially valued. Lone Lake continues to have the best Secchi disc reading even with a decline. Help us change the trend... Incline the decline!