Dear Lady of the Lake,

Do you ever speak at events or answer questions in person? It would be great to discuss lake topics with you. I just moved back into the area and as a kayak enthusiast, I want to learn more about our lake. Where can I find out more about water issues going on in Lake County?

Gerry, getting caught up in my kayak in Clearlake

Dear Gerry,

Nice to have you back in wonderful Lake County! Your questions are very important and I think they are timely to answer right now, even though they cover a wide variety of topics.

As Lady of the Lake, I do attend events and conduct outreach to the community outside of this column. For example, you can catch me on the last Sunday of every month on the local radio station, KPFZ 88.1 during Betsy Cawn’s Essential Public Information Hour (2 to 3 p.m.) and What’s next hour (3 to 4 p.m.). I will be on the radio this Sunday, April 24, from 2 to 4 p.m.

I usually spend about 60 to 90 minutes talking about water and lake news, covering topical and relevant topics, and answering any guest questions. You are welcome to call in to the studio (707-263-3435) and ask me any lake or water question, or you can write me an email and I can answer it on air.

If you don’t have a radio, you can also stream KPFZ online from your computer, tablet or smartphone. To find more information visit, KPFZ’s website at https://kpfz.org/.

In addition to the radio spot, I do attend live events and provide in-person outreach and education. The next event for the Lady of the Lake booth will be the Big Valley Small Farms Tour on Saturday, May 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Farms tour is an interactive travel event, where you drive around to visit local small farms and experience fun activities, farm tours and wonderful farm products. These farms are all located in the Big Valley area, but there will be refreshments and live music at the home base; Ripe Choice Farm. Some individuals and organizations will also be at Ripe Choice Farm to provide information about the natural communities in Lake County.

I will have a booth, so will fellow lake enthusiast and scientist, Sarah Ryan, from the Big Valley Rancheria Environmental EPA. She will be present to talk about the Big Valley and Cal-Watch cyanobacteria, drinking water and well monitoring program, as well as other issues like restoration and drought impacts. Other participants will include Rachel Avilla of WildNature with info about living with wildlife and the importance of native plants and wildlife habitats, The Lake County Land Trust will be present to discuss their efforts to preserve green spaces, and the event will also showcase several Certified Tourism Ambassadors on site.

The farm tour itself will feature the Ripe Choice Farm, Campodonico Olive Farm, Peace & Plenty Farm, Edenberry Farms, and Bell Haven Flower Farm.

It will be a great event and a great opportunity for the whole family to learn about local farming, support local communities, and learn about water and nature programs.

The Ripe Choice Farm is located at 2550 Soda Bay Road, Lakeport. And you can find more information on the Big Valley Small Farms tour on their event facebook page @BigValleySmallFarms. This event does not require registration or a fee to attend.

Konocti Regional Water Trails on Clear Lake

I don’t know how long you have been out of County, but there are some awesome online resources for an enthusiastic kayaker and water-lover like yourself, Gerry!.

Learn about the water trails around Clear Lake from the Konocti Regional Trails (KRT) website. The Konocti Regional Trails website is located here.

This website has a wide range of information about pathways, land, and water trails located in Lake County, CA. On the webpage, under the “trails” tab you can find a link to all the water trails and an interactive map to all the public water access points around Clear Lake.

There are eight (8) water trails described and mapped on the website, with each trail-specific page describing the length (in miles), the approximate time to paddle (at a leisurely pace to enjoy the sights and views), the experience level needed to navigate the trail, the closest and best launch area to access the trail, and the trail description and natural highlights along the trail.

For example, if you are an avid birder, and want to capture some awesome avian wildlife, you might really enjoy Water Trail #2 (WT2) Tule Maze at Anderson Marsh, #6 (WT6) the Wetlands of Long Tule Point, or #7 (WT7) Rodman Slough. These three trails boast several bird-centric highlights such as migratory waterfowl routes, grebe nesting sites, and Great Blue Heron rookeries, among others.

In addition to the website, there are downloadable brochures that can be printed and brought on the water while kayaking. Each brochure provides a detailed map and unique features to look for, as well as important safety messages specific to that trail such as fast currents, cold, deep waters, or steep shorelines.

Most importantly, remember that if you move your kayak around from lake to lake, that you ALWAYS Clean, Drain, Dry your kayak / canoe, paddles, life vest, and any other equipment in between visiting water bodies. If your kayak is on a trailer, has a motor, and is longer than 8 feet, it might require a Lake County Mussel prevention sticker ($20). Visit www.nomussels.com or call Lake County Water Resources to check at 707-263-2344.

Lake County is very lucky to have such a diverse and beautiful resource like Clear Lake, right here at our fingertips. Many people in the cities have to drive for hours just to experience a little bit of what we have right here, in our own backyards! I hope you stay safe and have fun enjoying all the water trails, Gerry!

Upcoming lake issue opportunities

Your last question is very broad Gerry, but it’s my favorite and I really like that you are asking this question. It’s very important for the public (Mr, Ms. and Mx. Taxpayer) , to be aware of what is going on in your community and how important water issues are being addressed. For “Lake” County residents, anything involving Clear Lake should be top of the list, since our lake is so important to the local economy and ecology.

Usually, I try to highlight upcoming events or opportunities in my column, so (head’s up selfish plug ahead!) I would recommend reading my column every two weeks, here in the freely accessible Lake County News, to see what relevant events I will highlight.

If you are a fisherperson, or have family members that are avid fisherpersons, there are two great places to learn about current fishing activities and fishing conditions in Clear Lake.

In the Lake County Record-Bee, Local Sports Section, a bi-weekly column written by Terry Knight, covers upcoming fishing tournaments, tournament results, and other relevant lake and recreation topics.

Terry Knight also has a Wednesday 10 a.m. radio program, on KPFZ 88.1, “Lake County Outdoors”, where he and co-host, Franklin Ley, cover a wide variety of fishing and wildlife topics, but most shows are guided by the incoming calls and questions from the public. Both hosts are extremely familiar with the natural ecosystems of Lake County and provide colorful descriptions and stories of experience from both water and land.

If you are interested in general information about the Lake, and other aquatic resources in Lake County, I would recommend following the Lake County Water Resources Department Facebook page @lakecountywater. The Water Resources Department usually posts relevant information about current lake conditions, trail conditions at Highland Springs Recreation Area, Clean Up Events around the Lake, and where and how to attend public meetings for issues like groundwater, flood preparedness, and invasive species.

The Water Resource Department facebook will also post when there are upcoming activities occurring in the Lake that might be unusual or deserve extra explanation or education. Examples of such activities might be when the County conducts shoreline or dock inspections, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife conducts electroshocking in the lake and streams, or USGS conducts large-scale fish netting for research or there are some unique fish or wildlife events like Grebe nesting season, or Clear Lake Hitch are spawning in the streams.

Lastly, there are some major lake restoration efforts underway through the Blue Ribbon Committee For the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake. To learn about this committee, you can check out my two-part column from September 2021. Part 1, from Sept. 12, “Bemused and Confused about the Blue Ribbon Committee”, and Part 2, from Sept. 19, “More about the Blue Ribbon Committee.”

You can also find out information from previous BRC meetings or to learn about upcoming meeting agendas, please visit the Natural Resources Agency Blue Ribbon Committee for The rehabilitation of Clear Lake website.

The next month for the Blue Ribbon Committee is VERY important, as several projects are being proposed, refined, reviewed, and approved for funding. This funding, with no maximum amount established by the committee, will go a long way in addressing some of the major water quality issues with Clear Lake, and improving community engagement and stewardship with both the lake and land.

On Tuesday, April 26, at 2:30 p.m., the Blue Ribbon Socioeconomic Sub Committee will be meeting virtually to review and refine several education and stewardship projects aimed at improving educational resources and tools and developing stronger community partnerships.

To access and attend this meeting, the Zoom link is https://csus.zoom.us/j/85775499669 with Call-in phone number: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 85775499669#.

While the final funding amounts are still not yet finalized, the approximate amount in total for the entire list of socioeconomic projects is estimated to be between $500,000 and $1 Million. The list of projects being proposed or discussed include:

- Kelseyville Community Strategy Proposal (Seigler Springs Community Redevelopment Association and UC Davis Center For Regional Change);
- Mendocino-Lake Community College Environmental Education Pathway proposal; 
- Tribal EcoRestoration Alliance (TERA) Water and Fire: EcoCultural Restoration proposal.

You can access the previous socioeconomic committee meeting, from March 22, online here. 

On Thursday, April 28, at 1 p.m., the Blue Ribbon Technical Subcommittee will be meeting to review and refine several management and technical projects aimed at reducing nutrients in the lake and restoring wetlands and shorelines.

To access and attend this meeting, the Zoom link is https://csus.zoom.us/j/89089976114 with Call-in Phone number: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 89089976114#

While the final funding amounts are still not yet finalized, the approximate amount in total for the entire list of projects can be somewhere within the $2 -3 Million range. The list of projects being proposed or discussed include:

- UCD / Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) Oxygenation Pilot Project In the Oaks Arm;
- Big Valley Rancheria Restoration Proposals;
- Robinson Rancheria Invasive Fish Management;
- Lake County Watershed Protection District Tule Replanting/Primrose Removal;
- Lake County Watershed Protection District Airborne Electromagnetic Survey for Groundwater.

You can access the previous technical sub committee meeting, from March 24th, online here.

The primary goal of these subcommittee meetings is to confirm proposals for consideration in the next state funding request, which will be determined by the Blue Ribbon Committee at large on May 25, 2022.

Projects that get funded will then be implemented, starting as early as Summer 2023, and together, these projects can have huge beneficial impacts for long-term restoration and recovery for Clear Lake, streams, wetlands, and all connected human and wildlife communities.

Sincerely,

Lady of the Lake

Angela De Palma-Dow is a limnologist (limnology = study of fresh inland waters) who lives and works in Lake County. Born in Northern California, she has a Master of Science from Michigan State University. She is a Certified Lake Manager from the North American Lake Management Society, or NALMS, and she is the current president/chair of the California chapter of the Society for Freshwater Science. She can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..