Volume L XVIII ~ November 2023 | |
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Lake Sunapee Protective Association
Devoted to the Environmental Quality of the Lake Sunapee Watershed
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A Flash Of The Beacon
Welcome to A Flash of the Beacon!
A quick look at what's happening
at the Center for Lake Studies,
highlights of current news and events,
plus what's going on outside in nature.
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 |  | November is a quiet time of year here in the harbor. Both the boats and the colors are steadily leaving the area. As the last of the sailboats are being lifted out of the water, quiet begins replacing the hum of autumn's activities. November will find the LSPA staff writing articles, attending meetings and conferences, and reaching out, via the computer and in person, to work with schools, libraries, committees, and town boards. All year long the staff at LSPA participate in a wide variety of citizen science workshops, webinars, meetings, and discussions. These include topics that range from invasive species, to erosion issues, to cyanobacteria, to sediment and septic concerns, to name just a few! Sharing our data, having in-depth discussions and dialogues, working with the community, partner organizations and research scientists regarding Lake Sunapee's watershed supports our educational goal to foster an understanding of the importance of preserving and enhancing the special environment of the Lake Sunapee Region.
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LSPA works closely with many organizations to better the health and quality of the Lake Sunapee Watershed. One such group is the Global Lake
Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON) in which we provide data to researchers around the world through our buoy and other collected data. The LSPA buoy collects data 24/7 and one important piece of data at this time of year is lake turnover. Lake Sunapee’s autumn turnover was recorded by the buoy on October 14, pinpointing the temperature changes every ten meters.
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LSPA staff completed the last water quality testing for 2023, scheduling the next sampling out on the ice in 2024. After finalizing the 2023 data, LSPA’s Water Quality Lab Manager, Teriko MacConnell reported that the lab processed over 930 water samples this season (the average numbers being in the mid 800's). The increase Teriko attributes to the fact that tributaries that normally dry up in the summer continued to flow all season long due to the tremendous amount of rain we received. With each sample requiring 1 - 6 different analyses, Teriko and the interns processed 4,418 water samples over the course of the 2023 season.
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Below Education Director Kathleen Stowell engages the LSPA Board in an exercise to illustrate lake turnover. | |
Our gratitude for the vast number of volunteers who put in hours of service in supporting committee work, developing campaigns, watching for invasives, helping with educational programs, contributing to lighthouse repairs and the beautification of LSPA's gardens (just to name a few!) is immeasurable! Thank You to all!! | |
This map shows the Sunapee Watershed and LSPA Long-term Monitoring Program (LMP) stations. All these sites on the map are monitored by LSPA staff and volunteers from May to October and site 210 once during the winter. With the size and scope of this work, LSPA is extremely grateful for the dedicated volunteers who trek out and help with the collecting of water samples. This work is essential to understanding the area's water quality, how the water is moving through the watershed and what is moving with it. During this season of giving thanks, LSPA extends a heartfelt thank you to all who support this important role of measuring what our lakes and ponds are telling us about the watershed. | |
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November is Native American Heritage Month ~
The land and lakes of the Sunapee Region are all part of N'dakinna, the traditional ancestral homeland of the Abenaki, Pennacook, and Wabanaki peoples past and present. LSPA acknowledges and honors, with gratitude, the land and waterways and the alnobak (people) who have stewarded N'dakinna throughout generations.
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Curly-Leaf Pondweed - Baptist Pond
Curly-leaf pondweed, an invasive plant, was discovered in Baptist Pond, north of Sunapee over the summer. Divers, contracted by NHDES, worked on four separate days in September and October to hand pull curly-leaf pondweed plants. The Extraction Report noted that the "divers began their extraction along the shoreline of Stoney Brook Road. There, they found most of the curly-leaf pondweed plants reached the surface. Instead of single stem plants, most of the plants were four or more stems branching off a long linear root with more than one turion. Plants were light to mid-green in color, with stems reaching up to four feet tall." Overall the divers were able to extract a total of 28.75 gallons. More work will continue in the spring and next summer to control this invasive plant.
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Keeping the Lights On ~
This has been a challenging year for Lake Sunapee’s iconic lighthouses, but LSPA’s commitment to maintaining the lighthouses remains strong. During our summer of high water, the Burkehaven Lighthouse was inundated, and in October the roof began to leak, requiring emergency repairs. LSPA’s Watershed Director, Geoff Lizotte, worked with Baker Boyce, Bill Wightman and John Merriman to complete roof repairs and upgrade solar panels and the housing for the beacon light. The uniqueness of the beacon light and supply chain issues are causing a delay in the completion of the project. With continued collaboration and volunteer support, the plan is to have the Burkehaven Lighthouse up and shining very soon. LSPA has maintained Lake Sunapee’s three lighthouses since the 1980’s. We are currently gearing up for the major project of rebuilding the cribs (bases) of the Burkehaven and Herrick Cove Lighthouses.
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The removal of the Burkehaven Lighthouse roof. | |
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Repairing the
structural damage.
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Watershed Director Geoff Lizotte holding Burkehaven Lighthouse's beacon light. | |
Watershed Management Plan Updates ~ | |
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Granliden, Sunapee ~
The construction of stormwater best management practices that addressed beach erosion along the lake access road at Granliden in Sunapee was completed in October by United Construction and Granliden Community Association (GCA) personnel. LSPA Watershed Director Geoff Lizotte worked closely with General Manager Andy Fowler of the GCA, Project Manager Mike Saindon of United Construction, and Water Resource Engineer Branden Martin of Stone Environmental to ensure all project components were implemented as designed.
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Pine Cliff Road, Newbury
Another completed project addressed roadside erosion along Pine Cliff Road. Here, construction of best practices was completed by the Newbury Highway Department in October. Geoff Lizotte worked with Newbury Highway Administrator Cal Prussman, Newbury Highway Foreman Tate Sweetbrown and Water Resource Engineer Branden Martin of Stone Environmental to complete the project as designed.
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Funding for these two projects, which were identified as areas of concern in the 2020 Lake Sunapee Watershed Management Plan, was provided in part by a Watershed Assistance Grant from the NH Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) with Clean Water Act Section 319 funds from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These projects would not have been possible without the generous cash and in-kind matches that were provided by the GCA and the Newbury Highway Department.
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Little Lake Sunapee Association ~
Watershed Director Geoff Lizotte met with Little Lake Sunapee Protective Association members identifying and discussing concerns regarding erosion and runoff at the Canoe and Cartop boat launch on 114 (Little Sunapee Road) in Springfield. Other areas where water/salt/sediment runoff and unchecked watercraft pose concerns along the fragile shore of Little Lake Sunapee were also noted, many of which were identified in LSPA's 2020 Watershed Management Plan.
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LSPA's Watershed Wise ~
Closing up for the season?
Thinking about winter preparations?
It's never too early to think about snow.
The fall is a great time to make your snow and ice management plans. Look for contractors that are SnowPro certified. The NH Green SnowPro program emphasizes specific methods which limit the use of salt that is used to manage snow and ice. Certified SnowPro professionals complete detailed coursework and pass an examination that stresses the importance of:
• How snow melt chemicals work
• The negative effects on over-use of salt
• Proper application rates of salt or non-chloride control products
• How to set, adjust, and test their equipment for proper application rates
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The best way to protect our water quality is to properly manage and reduce the use of salt, ice melt products, sand and other accumulating sediments. Make your snow and ice management plan this fall. Have your service provider walk your property with you. Map out the areas where snow should be piled. Snowbanks should ideally be placed in areas which slope away from the waterfront, where spring runoff to the lake is minimal, and where spring cleanup is straight forward. Plan ahead! Snow will be here before we know it!
Check out these non-chloride ice control products.
Click here to see one product example.
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Dock De-Icers ~
This month if you are into fall projects and working on docks and considering de-icers, please check out our website for information, guidelines plus lake safety and environmental concerns. Lake residents are encouraged, as they prepare for winter, to double check the wiring that connects to their docks and de-icers. Remember, regular inspection, testing, and maintenance can find electrical system deficiencies that permit electric currents to pass through the water.
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Use a thermostat to run the de-icer only when the air temperature drops below freezing
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Use a timer - run the device for only 2 - 4 hours a day
- Set up your de-icer to form a narrow open water area around your dock
- Point a circulator device in a vertical direction rather than at an angle towards the middle of the lake to minimize dangerously thin ice (use a purpose built bracket rather than ropes for easier adjustment - most manufacturers offer them as an accessory)
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Mark Your Calendar:
Public Hearing at the Newbury Town Office
November 6 at 6:00 pm
Please attend the November 6th public hearing to support efforts to reduce water pollution resulting from poorly maintained septic systems.
The purpose of the public hearing on November 6 is to review and discuss a proposal for required septic pumping in Newbury. The intent of this proposal is to protect the Newbury watersheds from potential contamination and it is modeled after Sunapee's health rules that were passed in March of this year.
Click here for more information.
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Tuesday's Nature Exploration Story Time
10:00 AM
November 7th ~ Loons
November 14th~ Bears
November 21st ~ Turkeys
November 28th ~ Goodbye Autumn, Hello Winter!
Come join LSPA environmental educators for nature themed activities on Tuesday mornings in November at LSPA’s Center for Lake Studies starting on the 7th.
Each Tuesday will offer a different theme and include a story, activities, a craft, and exploration. These programs are designed for young children and their caregivers. They are free and open to all! We look forward to welcoming you in the Discovery Room, a room full of fun ways to investigate the out of doors. On November 7th we will explore the unique attributes of the loon and investigate what they are doing this time of year! We look forward to seeing you!
Nature Exploration Story Hour Schedule
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LSPA Education ~
This October LSPA educators held Watershed Discovery Days with area 5th grade classes. Students designed water filters, traveled through the water cycle, built a watershed, and explored LSPA's exhibits learning all about Lake Sunapee's Watershed. LSPA educators have also taught lessons on migration, properties of water and climate change with Richards School. Mount Royal students have been exploring trees and studying their seasonal changes with LSPA.
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Midge and Tim Eliassen of Sunapee Named 2023 Conservationists of the Year
Forest Society honors protectors of
Lake Sunapee and Mount Kearsarge
The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests presented its Conservationist of the Year Award at its 122nd Annual Meeting held on September 23, 2023. This prestigious award honors people whose work to promote and achieve conservation is exemplary; people whose actions have made a difference not just in their own backyards, but also have advanced the protection and stewardship of land statewide. This year, Midge and Tim Eliassen of Sunapee were honored as the Conservationists of the Year in recognition of their longtime activism, leadership and support of lake issues, forest conservation, recreation trails, and land conservation in the Lake Sunapee and Mount Kearsarge region.
To read more click here.
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November has been called the "in between season." It begins with the fading of autumn colors. The intense fall hues become muted. The outside world turns a dull brown and gray. Winter attempts to show up with its white coat, but doesn't always stay. Holding on are little hints of autumn seen in the beautiful yellows of the beech and aspen leaves. These yellows, the vivid green mosses and ferns, plus a few bright red winter berries all provide brilliant shocks of vibrant color to the surrounding bland November landscape. As winter approaches trees are in the process of converting starches into sugars, and lowering the freezing point of their cells. Plants, like milkweed, release their seeds on fluffs of white into the winds. Deer mice are one of the many animals that collect these seeds, sometimes leaving the fluff, sometimes using it in their nests.
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Gardens offer wintering habitats for a wide variety of animals. Let your spent flowers go to seed. Keeping seeds available for wildlife can provide additional sustenance for them during this bleak season before winter. You can also get creative and create bouquets of dried flowers to hang, offering birds differing types of seeds. These beautiful arrangements can attract new wildlife and are a delight to see.
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| |  | November’s full moon is called the Beaver Moon and it will reach its peak illumination in the morning hours of Monday, November 27. Birds that migrate or hunt at night navigate by moonlight and starlight. Artificial light can cause them to wander off course. Every year millions of birds die colliding with needlessly illuminated buildings. Migratory birds depend on cues from properly timed seasonal schedules. Artificial lights can cause them to migrate too early or too late and miss ideal climate conditions for nesting, foraging and other behaviors. As the days get shorter, now is a great time to be mindful of both indoor and outdoor lighting. Overhead migration season is in full swing. Many hardy stragglers (robins, bluebirds, kingfishers) hang around as long as there’s a food and water source available. Most of the bird world will quiet down this month, but some flocking species (grosbeaks and finches) are known to be quite noisy as they migrate through. Males of many migrating bird species will not fly as far south as the females and will return north earlier in hopes to claim a high-quality territory.
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NH mammals, who will stay active all winter, now have on their extra warm coats. The ermine and snowshoe hares' coats will have turned all white by the end of November, and, like some of us, they are hoping for a good snowy winter! Enjoy getting outside during this “in between” season and discover the awe of nature’s fine details and the delight of surprising colors!
To read more about what’s going on during this time of year check out:
BirdCast
Northern Woodlands
Naturally Curious with Mary Holland
NH Garden Solutions
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Resources ~
Check out LSPA's Resource Page for ideas, articles, things to do, and other resource information!
LSPA's Autumn Discoveries page has an abundance of resources for adults to explore the local area during these beautiful autumn days. Following LSPA's theme of "discovery, learning, and research" you'll find this page shares information not only on what and where to explore safely, but wildlife links, webinars, courses and much more!
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This month LSPA Kid's Ecology Corner page highlights a wide variety of activities. Find out about the incredibly beautiful autumn leaves, when, where birds are migrating, plus the amazing adaptations of the black bear and loon that make them so unique. November is a wonderful time to explore the outdoors!
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Be a Lake Sunapee Watershed Explorer! | |
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Autumn is a perfect time to get to know the Lake Sunapee Watershed! LSPA invites you and your family to explore the Lake Sunapee Watershed. Enjoy the lake and the forests of the watershed while you learn a bit about the science and history of Lake Sunapee. Pick 5 activities from the attached list and when you have completed them fill out the simple documentation form. You will have good memories, new knowledge and a patch to remember the experience by!
Click here for the list and form!
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Read, Listen and Participate in Local Ecology ~ | |
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Project Feeder Watch ~ November 1st
Project FeederWatch turns your love of feeding birds into scientific discoveries. FeederWatch is a November-April survey of birds that visit backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. You don’t even need a feeder! All you need is an area with plantings, habitat, water or food that attracts birds. The schedule is completely flexible. Count your birds for as long as you like on days of your choosing, then enter your counts online. Your counts allow you to track what is happening to birds around your home and contribute to a continental data-set of bird distribution and abundance.
Click here to sign up for FeederWatch
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Join the Sunapee Conservation Commission
for a Walk Through Dewey Woods Meadow!
Monday, November 6
at 1:00 PM rain or shine
Learn about the commission’s plan to begin the restoration this winter of this little-known and beautiful 19th-century pasture on a guided public hike.
Meet at Seven Hearths Lane
off Rte 11.
Sunapee Conservation Commission needs a member & an alternate – Interested?
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Ausbon Sargent's
Landscape History Guided Hike
Monday, November 6
2:00pm to 4:00pm
Sawyer Brook Preserve in Grantham boasts a fascinating natural and human history. Walk the northern trails of this property with Ausbon Sargent and the Grantham Conservation Commission to see evidence of how people and wildlife have relied on this landscape over time. The walk will be approximately 1-2 miles over well-established walking paths.
This event is free to members and non-members, but registration is required and can be done by emailing stewardship@ausbonsargent.org or by calling the office at: 603-526-6555
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Community Event: Mountain Voices
November 9, 2023, 6:00 PM
Museum of the White Mountains
34 Highland Street
Plymouth, NH
"A Century of NH Land Conservation at the Society for the Protection of NH Forests," part of Mountain Voices, will be presented by Forest Society Senior Director of Education Dave Anderson at the Museum of the White Mountains.
This is a hybrid event. To receive a Zoom link, please register HERE.
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The Harris Center for Conservation Education
presents
Thursday, November 30
5:30 pm to 6:30 pm
Zoom
Join The Harris Center for a talk put together by New Hampshire Healthcare Workers for Climate Action, a grassroots, non-partisan coalition of healthcare workers. Conservation biologist and nurse Cynthia Nichols will discuss the climate-health nexus, along with climate solutions and what we can do to protect ourselves.
To get the login details, please register here.
Closed captioning will be available. This event will be recorded. To ensure access to the recording, please register for this event, even if you cannot attend live.
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Do you have any spectacular photos of Lake Sunapee’s watershed to share with our readers? Send them to Nancy - nancy@lakesunapee.org
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Lake Sunapee Protective Association
Center for Lake Studies
63 Main Street
Sunapee, NH 03782
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