Begin the weekend in silence!

Last night's Manchaug Pond...

This morning I noticed... the silence.

6:45 a.m. Besides a few songbirds chirping, there was silence - no boats, no jetskis, no music, no talking, and no roosters crowing in the distance.

7:05 a.m. The same... silence.

7:10 a.m. One bass boat roaring out of the channel from the Public Boat Ramp. One boat. Just one!

Why the silence? On the boat front, there are no fishing tournaments listed for this weekend and next! Two weeksends of sleeping late if you like or two weeksends of early morning peace :) Click the title of this post to link to the state ramp schedule to see for yourself.
http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/pab/pab_schedevents.htm#M

If you are new to Manchaug Pond and the MPA, the State Public Access Boat Ramp used to open before 6:00 a.m. with the count and the roar of the bass boats occuring minutes later. It was at an MPA Annual Meeting inwhich our members asked John Hebert, then the Sutton Police Chief if the time could be delayed a bit. With a definite "yes" and a siting of current laws on allowable noise and reasonable times, immediate action was taken. Our thanks to Mr. Hebert who has since retired from the Police Dept, but continues to serve the community as a recently elected member of the Sutton Board of Selectman.
I should note that prior to the MPA's strong support and request for the Town management of the State Boat ramp, there was no gate or gatekeeper to monitor use of the ramp. User came round the clock, and once the parking spaces were filled, parked along the roadsides and on neighboring lawns. The gate is now closed when the ramp is full, and at 10:00 p.m. seven days a week and opened in the morning thanks to the dedication of our town gatekeeper.

Tonight's Ride

Reading the Newspaper

In the News...

Today- Woman injured by a vehicle near Parker Road and Manchaug Road yesterday morning - Well that explains what all the sirens were about.

Yesterday-Mass Environmental Police announce increase in patrols on selected lakes across the state after recent jetski accidents.
Remember when operating a jetski that you must wear a life jacket, cannot operate between sunset and sunrise, cannot operate within 150 feet of a beach, cannot tow anything, and cannot operate if under 16 years old.

- In N.H. a woman pinned down a fox and held it there for 10 minutes waiting for police after it bit her daughter. Glad it wasn't our foxes from Manchaug Pond!.. You know I haven't seen a fox this year in Area 3. Wonder were the little ones who sat on my porch last year went to live.

Thursday - Two black bears eating at a bird feeder on a deck at a home on Coes Pond in Worester. Wasn't it just a few years ago a black bear was spotted here on Manchaug Pond in Area 5 eating seeds from a bird feeder! Take those feeders in early in the season!





- In Douglas, an article titled "Decision on watershed district near" hits home! Selectman in Douglas have been hard at work with legal counsel and the lake associations to craft a document they can fully support which would create a municipal district for Whitin Reservoir. Douglas consulted their legal counsel, having him review the document and make recommendations which they felt would protect both the interests of the town and the towns people. The lake associations' attorney incorporated the changes into the document addressing the board's concern over the flow into the Mumford River for the wastewater treatment plant downstream, as well as concerns over the powers of eminent domain and that the town appointed member of the district have voting rights. Progress!

I wonder what will be in the Sunday paper! :)

Haybale Maze?

My husband came home a few weeks ago with "You've got to see this!" Neither the property owner building the new summer cottage, my husband nor I had heard of this...
an access for critters mandated by the Conservation Commission!



It is a break in the fence which allows wildlife to come up from the lake yet still prevents erosion into the lake during construction. Wouldn't you know that beside this duck, a snapping turtle was found last week on the construction site! Each year a female snapper comes up from the lake at this house or the one next to it, crosses the road and heads up the neighbor's lawn to find a spot in the shrub bed to lay its eggs.



Incredible isn't it! And to think we could be living in a 3 decker in Worcester missing all this! :)

Enjoy the lake! Today was the longest day of the year I'm told.

Yesterday's Evening Cruise

A beautiful evening to kayak around the lake.
This mother and daughter from Douglas access the lake from our State Boat Ramp for a trip around the lake after supper.

Water Transparency and the Secchi Disk Test

This is a photo taken from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency NOT our MPA volunteer actually performing the annual Secchi test on Manchaug Pond.

I've been "visiting" the land of 10,000 lakes on the web as they seem to be very committed to water quality as well as experienced in taking action! For instance, through legislation Minnesota has used watershed districts since 1955 to protect their many lakes. One source reported 49 watershed districts, another 249! They have the statutes and regulations all layed out as to how the district functions, its purpose and powers. They even have a professional association for the watershed districts! Anyway lets get back to the Secchi test!

What is a Secchi? Well, every MPA Annual Meeting, our gentlemen experienced Secchi volunteer gives a quick overview and a report. He has been doing it for years! Thanks Don! (Oh sorry, I'm not suppose to use names, but couldn't resist!) Minnesota reports: "Secchi transparency (clarity) is a quick and easy measurement of lake's water quality. Secchi transparency provides an indirect measure of the amount of suspended material in the water; which in many Minnesota lakes - is the amount of algae in the water." Here in swallow Manchaug Pond we not only see algae but also sediment and organic material (decomposing pine needles, leaves, etc) brought in by erosion and runoff from the watershed.

The Secchi disk is one small monitoring device we have been using for many years on Manchaug Pond. Our efforts with the Nonpoint Source Pollution Grant project and the watershed district are actions we are and can take to keep our lake healthy. This positively impacts down stream as well- Steven's Pond, the Mumford River, the Blackstone...

Click the title of this post to take you to a site which shows the Secchi disk in action. "Watch the slide show that follows the change in Secchi transparency for Minnesota lakes from four different classifications of lake water quality." Note that as the water warms, algae growth increases causing water clarity to decrease.

Click on to the title of this post to take you to the Secchi slideshow! And stay tuned for more information :)

Lake Views from the Board Meeting

A recent Board meeting held on the Douglas shore provided these views for those attending. What a peaceful cove!

Also, we are in need of an area representative from Area 3 to serve on the Board of Directors. The husband and wife team who served this area recently sold their home on the lake. If you are interested in taking a more active role, learning more of the details effecting our lake and the association and could spare a Thursday evening now and then let me know!

Salute! Yesterday was Flag Day!

Flags fly high and proud on Manchaug Pond!

Makes me think to look ahead, as in less than a month we will celebrate our nation's birth on July 4th. Decorate your boat, your home, or both! We'll post photos! Also mark your calendar for the lighting of flares around the shore will take place on July 3rd with flares available at the area campground stores or from your area representatives.

Also mark down the Annual Meeting scheduled for Saturday, August 18th. The menu, speaker and other details are being worked out. At the last board meeting, it was actually brought up that we should forget about the brownies from Helen's bakery and go with ice cream! Another individual suggested, since our chef sold her home on the lake, that we have grinders from a local pizza place rather than our traditional hamburgers, hotdogs and corn on the cob! 40 years of success and now a suggestion to change the menu! Radical, don't you think!

ACTUALLY, email your suggestions right here and we'll get them to the Board of Directors!!

(I need to figure out how to put one of those survey/polls on the blog!)

Lake Quiet!

The lake remains quiet except for the roar of the bass boats on weekend mornings. Why the quiet, well the weather is cool and the children are still in school so families are not yet camping and down at their summer homes.

Jetski accidents on Indian Lake and Lake Quinsigamond have been the recent buzz in the newspapers. Inexperienced and young operators are often sighted as the reason for the crashes. We have the potential for the same sort of thing here on Manchaug Pond with new operators coming off the boat ramp. Generally the operators living on the lake have years of experience with boats, the layout of the lake and those rocks and walls, and the traffic patterns and busy areas.

Click this link or the title of this post to review boat safety regulations in Massachusetts or to take the FREE online Boat Safety Test/Certificate!

http://www.boaterexam.com/usa/massachusetts/

Why Did the Snapper Cross the Road?

... to get back to the lake!

This beauty was crossing Parker Road in Sutton this afternoon headed down the bank to the area just after the dam between Manchaug and Stevens Ponds. I suspect this is a female who has laid her eggs in the lawn of the first home on the left as you are heading to the village of Manchaug. The previous owner was a friend who would call us each year to watch the young snappers emerge from the sand at the edge of the lawn and run down her driveway heading for water.

If you read your latest issue of Massachusetts Wildlife you would know that "snappers rarely leave the water except to lay their eggs or to move between wetlands." The article reports the findings of a recent study conducted in Grafton, Massachusetts on turtle road mortality.

Click the title of this post to be linked to www.masswildlife.org. It is a great publication - beautiful photographs and interesting articles - also one of the editors is a regular here at Manchaug Pond. My husband met him one sunny winter day ice fishing.

View of Manchaug Pond from Space :)

Click the link (the title of this post) for a satellite view of Manchaug Pond. This is the watershed which feeds water into our lake. Note the islands, and the sandbar which is all that is left to Blueberry Island. Remember that years ago back to the original level of the lake, that the island/sandbar was part of the mainland! What highwater can do!

If you zoom in you can find your house but you won't be able to see if someone is in your driveway as the photo is not from today - no leaves on the trees! :))

Zoom out for a better view of Stevens Pond or even further yet of Whitin Reservoir and beyond!

Healthy Lawns and Landscapes in Your Watershed

May 16th or so, our MPA 1st Vice President attended a MA Department of Environmental Protection workshop in Marlboro titled Healthy Lawn and Landscapes in Your Watershed.

She brought back a lot of information which the MPA will be bring to you - basics on "how to improve water quality, preserve water supply and save time and money on your yard." Specifically you will receive helpful info on caring for your lawn, effective alternatives to pesticides and chemical fertilizers, composting, plantings of grasses, shrubs and trees to eliminate run-off and more, more, more.

Here's a sample of a few basic tips on
MOWING YOUR LAWN:

~Mow only when the grass is dry to get a clean cut and minimize the spread of disease.

~Mow grass to a height of 2 1/2-3 inches (3" is best!) as the longer the grass, the more water is retained and the longer the roots of your lawn will be making it stronger and more tolerant. Keeping you grass longer also may allow it to outcompete weeds thus reducing the need for herbicides. Hand pick dandelions and other broadleaf weed from your lawn as you spot them - No need for costly weed killers!

~Sharpen mower blades every year to avoid damaging individual grass blades. A clean cut helps prevent disease in the lawn.

~Do NOT dispose of grass clippings in or near the lake. The clippings will break down and encourage the growth of algae which depletes the oxygen in the water and impacts fish and other aquatic species. Leave clippings on the lawn or compost them.

This is all brought to you as part of the Manchaug Pond Nonpoint Source Pollution Improvement Poject courtesy of your MPA and the Mass DEP under a 319 s. Non Point Source Pollution Grant Award.

Wildflowers, Owls and the Old Snapping Turtle in Area 7

Area 7 boasts an owl, a massive old snapping turtle swimming, as well as wildflowers along the roadsides. Here's a few of the flowers to be seen.

Can you name them?

Found!

A sign at the Manchaug Pond Public Boat Ramp still advertises the finding of a 14 K gold man's wedding ring. Give the inscription and it is yours!

Friday's Calm Before the Weekend!

Massachusetts Safe Boating Week May 19-25

Manchaug Pond has been quiet this week. Did you know it is Safe Boating Week in Massachusetts. Here's the official press release!



State Officials Urge Bay Staters to Observe Boat Safety Rules May 19-25 is Massachusetts Safe Boating Week

BOSTON – With Memorial Day and the start of the summer recreation season fast approaching, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles and the Massachusetts Environmental Police (MEP) kicked off Safe Boating Week by urging Massachusetts residents to wear life jackets and observe other boating laws and guidelines.

“While it is a great form of recreation, boating can be risky if precautionary measures are not taken to protect oneself, family and friends…We encourage all boaters to ‘Boat Smart from the Start,’” states a proclamation signed by Gov. Deval Patrick to declare May 19-25 Safe Boating Week in Massachusetts.

In addition to wearing life jackets, officials urged boaters to take a safety course, stay sober while boating, and make sure their boats are reliable and in good repair.

“As an avid boater myself, I know people are eager to get onto the Commonwealth’s waterways at this time of year. By taking a few important precautions, boaters can have fun but also stay safe,” Secretary Bowles said.

According to MEP Director James Hanlon, there were nine fatalities from boating accidents in Massachusetts last year. Eight were drownings and none of the victims wore a life jacket. Nationally, hundreds of people drown in boating-related accidents each year, and eight out of every ten victims were not wearing life jackets. In Massachusetts, the past decade has seen 95 boating fatalities. Hanlon said this is a one-third reduction from the previous ten-year period – an improvement attributed to expansion of boater education and marine enforcement, and safer boats and related equipment.

“Wearing a life jacket is the most important factor between life and death in many boating accidents,” said Hanlon.

Massachusetts law requires children under age 12 and all jet-ski riders and water-skiers to wear approved life jackets when boats are under way. The Commonwealth’s boating laws also prohibit anyone under age 12 from operating a motorboat unless accompanied and directly supervised by a competent person 18 years of age or older. Youths aged 12 through 15 must complete an approved basic boating course before operating a motorboat without adult supervision. Operating any vessel under the influence of alcohol or drugs is prohibited.

The Environmental Police encourage boaters of all ages to take a safe boating course. For a schedule of state-run boating courses, as well as links to state- and nationally-approved course providers and other safe boating organizations, visit www.state.ma.us/dfwele/dle/dlecours.htm.
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So What's Happening? The Non-Point Source Pollution Grant Project and Sutton Election

Hello All!

Life has been busy both on the personal front and with the MPA so I haven't had much time for blog entries.

Let me get you up to date on our Grant Project:

Four of our Board members attended a Start-up Meeting kicking off the s.319 Nonpoint Source Pollution Grant Project. This award is made possible under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act to address prevention, control and abatement of nonpoint source poolution. The April 9th meeting was held at the Milford office of CEI (Comprehensive Enviromental Incorporated) with two engineers assigned to our Manchaug Pond Improvement Project. CEI will provide $56,000 in consulting design and engineering services to the MPA and the Towns of Douglas and Sutton over the course of the 3 year project. All services from CEI will be paid for by federal funds.

This spring is slated for the engineering and design of the stormwater best management practices (BMP) at the 7 priority locations identified around the lake. These include 5 in Sutton on Manchaug Road and the Public Boat Ramp and 2 in Douglas on Oak Street. Specifically, 3 locations on Manchaug Road will see vegetative swale restabilization and plunge pools designed to prevent erosion and filter nutrient carrying water from the watershed before entering the lake. Another Manchaug Road site will see 2 leaching catch basins with a crushed stone bed. The fifth Sutton site, the Public Boat Ramp, will see a bioretention area (a special designed shrub garden to collect run off waters before they reach the lake), 2 leaching catch basins, a plunge pools and a vegetated swale with a gabion check dam. Sounds impressive doesn't it! A ride through the boat ramp shows the steep, paved slope of the parking lot, and the area which drains it all into the lake. The two Douglas sites will include plow pull-off restabilization, 2 plunge pools and vegetated swale restablization.

Summer and Fall of 2007 and into 2008 is slated for the construction of these BMPs by the Douglas and Sutton Town Highway Departments. This grant is bringing in over $64,000 in funds to the towns for construction materials. The towns'existing staff's labor and equipment will be used to complete this part of the project and as part of our matching component.


On another note: tomorrow, May 22nd, is an election day in Sutton. Don't forget to get out there and vote. A proposition 2 1/2 override is on the ballot as well as a question to require the town to once again plow ALL town roads. My road is actually one which will be effected by the outcome of this vote - plowed and graded by the town for decades, two years ago Sutton decided not to plow certain private roads - mine included. I can't tell you how important this one is! My grandson who lives on a private road on the Douglas side of the lake was taken one evening to the hospital - I thank the Town of Douglas for plowing those snowy roads making it possible for the ambulance to get through!

Also on the ballot is a Board of Selectman election. Retired Police Chief John Hebert is running against incumbent Bob Kneeland. You'll remember Chief Hebert attended past MPA Annual Meetings with then Town Administrator Pat Nedorosik. Mrs. Nedorosik worked with us to get the Town's okay on this Grant and Chief Hebert has supported the lake Boat Patrol Program and changed the Public Boat Ramp's opening hours from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. A change we greatly appreciate on the Sat. and Sunday morning as bass boats roar out of the channel!

Enjoy this sunshine! Talk to you tomorrow!

Photo of Manchaug Pond a Winner!

If you didn't receive a complimentary issue of the NEW AND IMPROVED Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, check it out online by clicking the title of this post and turn to page 31 for a beautiful photo of the lake taken by one of our members!

Titled "Drawdown on Lake Manchaug", the photo was submitted as part of the Bi-Community Amateur Photo Contest presented by the Millbury and Sutton Cultural Councils.

Great!

Good Morning Manchaug Pond!

I'm back and spring is here in full force! Manchaug Pond's signs of spring: high water, the weekend roar of bass boats announcing 7 a.m., temperatures in the 80's, the spring peepers singing around the lake their nightly songs, marsh marigolds providing the bright yellow along side the skunk cabbage in the watershed, and the simple white blooms of wild dogwood flowering along the road/woodsides... not to mention more company, my children & grandchildren swimming every day and sand on the kitchen floor which needs to be swept twice a day!

Also, my neighbor reports the first boat of the season hit the wall this morning.

Waterlevel Stablizes at 3 '' Over Full

Here's an update on the water level for those of you who can't just look out the window!

As of yesterday we are 3 inches over full but the height of the water on Manchaug Pond had leveled off, with no change reported in a 24 hour period.

Last Saturday morning while the sun was shining and before the rains came, the low flow gate was opened to the max. It remained open as the rains came down bringing 5 inches or more to the area. The significant run-off from a saturated soil of the watershed accounts for heavy water running into the lake and the considerable increase in the level. With the lake on a steady rise and an over full level, flooding was the concern. - some homeowners already reporting damage to docks and sunk boats. Weds morning a board was taken out of the spillway to further arrest the rising waters. Thursday morning's reading showed success with no increase in the water level.

Driving around the lake earlier in the week, on Manchaug Road in Sutton and on Oak Street, Douglas, I could see how the storm drain grant will not only benefit the lake but also the roadways where large puddles form and streams of water slow traffic and make for ice conditions in cooler temperatures.

Blue skys, warmer temperatures, and no rain are in sight for the weekend. Last evening I watched an eagle circle and glide high above the treetops over Torrey Road for quite a while and then head across the lake toward Area 8. Seems this magestic bird was also enjoying the spring sunshine.