When will the No Wake be eliminated?
 

Now, that the lake is slowly going down, when will the state drop the no wake within 600' rule? As I write this, the lake is about 7'' above full. Assuming no significant rainfall, I presume that by Saturday we will be down at least another 4 or 5 inches.

Dam rate down
 

Just noticed that they reduced the flow rate from about 2400 CFS to 2000 CFS. Seems like they are readying a return to "high normal". See site:

http://www.des.state.nh.us/rti_data/LKPN3_TABLE.HTML

How is it lakeside?

With the rain we had over the weekend and the rain predicted this week, I would be surprised if we break 504.32 by Saturday. That's always listed as the normal high, but if you look at Bizer's chart the lake exceeds that very often. If you look at the state chart, the upper bound of the standard deviation for this time of year is above 504.5 maybe 504.6 or even 504.7. That's reachable by Saturday. Looks like we are at 504.86 right now.

My sources:

http://www.bizer.com/bztnews.htm#lakelevel

http://www.des.state.nh.us/Dam/graph/graph2006.htm
http://www.des.state.nh.us/Dam/graph/chart2006.htm

http://www.des.state.nh.us/rti_inter...pesaukee#graph

http://www.des.state.nh.us/rti_data/wein3_TABLE.HTML

rain over the weekend?
 

i looked at a couple of US Geological Survey sites that show recent precipitation and it showed less than 1" fell over the weekend in both Tilton (nearest functional station at south end of lake) and Tamworth (nearest functional station at north end of lake). Are these inaccurate? Was there appreciably more rain than this?

That seems about right, I didn't mean to exagerate the rain. Just noting that was some.

Don't forget that the watershed is saturated and it's a lot bigger than the lake, so a widespread inch of rain can be more than an inch of lake height.

Totals from Laconia Airport
 

Here are the daily precip totals for the month from the airport:

June 1 - 0.45"
June 2 - 0.01"
June 3 - 0.32"
June 4 - 0.01"

Rose

That sounds about right to me.Most of the heavy rain fell south of the Winni watershed.

It looks like my predictions were optimistic. The lake is at 504.84 again, back up an inch or so. Looks like another week of 600' NWZ.

We have gotten pummeled with rain the last few days... but the weather is looking to clear up sometime tomorrow... long range looks good for the middle of Bike Week.

So maybe by next weekend?

Woodsy

I'm selfishly hoping that the Keeper holds the water a little longer.

After the recent flood downstream from Winni, the recent rains, and I assume runoff from Winni, have put the Merrimack River back up over the banks at the Lowel Motor Boat Club again.

We have yet to get our docks, any boats (with the exception of the one we lost over the falls) or even the safety barrells out onto the water!

I was at the club yesterday and today and there does not appear to be any sign the water is receding. The good news is it didn't come up too much overnight. (but it did come up an inch or so on the boat ramp and over the wall into the side yard)

I'm headed up to the lake sometime this week, it'll be the first bike week I will be at the lake where my friends and I don't have a boat in the water! So I have conflicting interests, I don't want more water down stream, and the lake has too much water...

EVERYONE....DO A NO MORE RAIN DANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :eek:

It's rising again!
 

Watching the level at our dock and it appears to have gone up almost an inch already today!:eek:

"No Wake Zone? What No Wake Zone?" Part II
 

I was out on the lake today and I was amazed at of the folks who were out there weren't aware of the extended No Wake Zone.

One fellow was just coming out from under the Governor's Island bridge and started to roll up on his throttle. I signalled to him to slow down. He backed off and came aside. When I informed him of the extended no wake zone, he didn't believe me. A quick call to the Marine Patrol on VHF 16 to inquire about it proved the point. The guy was apologetic and wondered why he didn't know about it. I told him I wasn't surprised as it wasn't all that well publicized except a day or two before Memorial Day weekend.

He asked when it would be repealed and I told him I didn't know and that he best check with the MP before heading out.

is it gone yet
 

any new news on the 600ft NWZ???
will it be gone this coming weekend do you think?

I don't think they will rescind it until the level reaches full lake... We need to drop another 6.00" or so to get there...

Woodsy

Probably not this weekend
 

They seem to be holding the level steady as they release flows downstream, so I would guess that we need another 10 days or so to get close to full lake. Pray for a dry weather pattern.

The dam operators backed off from 2400 CFS to 2000 CFS, just as last weekend's storms came through. That bumped the lake back up a few inches to 504.9. It seems to have peaked and should be headed down again.

I'm guessing somewhere around 504.6. That's about four inches lower, I don't think we'll make it by Friday. Monday might be a good day, after the bikers leave.

The blue section on this chart is the target:
http://www.des.state.nh.us/Dam/graph/graph2006.htm

since
 

well knowbody goes NW anyway!:laugh:

Observing the 600' NWZ
 

From my limited observations, in my area of the lake the boat traffic is minimal and almost ( not everyone ) obeys the rule. From the various posts, this observation seems to be the exception rather than the rule.

this past weekend (sunday) knowbody in the Paugus Bay area was doing the 600NWZ

Not Being Observed Here Either
 

Few boaters are observing the 600 ft. NWZ in the West Alton area either. We saw some today who weren't even obeying the standard 150 ft. rule. I don't think its due to lack of knowledge, either. Amazing how the presence of a MP boat results in instant compliance. As soon as he leaves, ....

Tamworth is too far west of those great rain-makers, the Ossipee Mountains.

At most sundowns late last week, showers rained on the southern slopes of the Ossipees. :look: Most of that runoff goes directly to the Melvin River, and then to Lake Winnipesaukee.

In the calm of this morning's lake surface, I see that my dock is once more IN the lake, rather than above it. Within a stone's throw, two new docks have floating pieces secured only by conduit, and have sunk below the surface again.

There doesn't seem to be any uniform observance of this new lakewide NWZ ruling—obviously an experiment gone wrong: There are boats 1200' off shore going slightly above NW, and some others close to shore going at top speed! Where the lake narrows so that no boat can be 600' offshore, nobody slows. (Somebody yesterday had an airhorn at that location, and used it—a lot!).

Because there are so few boats on the lake, "anything goes"? :confused:

Who is in charge of controlling the flow of the dam? Why would they cut the flow back while the lake is still rising? So your telling me we should all be flooded so some boat club in Lowell MA isn’t?

I actually was the one who called WMUR and convinced them to do the story last week. I did it because I called the governors’ office and was really upset with their reaction to this situation. Our lake is getting trashed. Our docks are taking on damage and people are ignoring the No Wake. Their response was that our Governor wants “Everyone to enjoy beautiful NH”. When I pressed about the situation and reminded them that there are plenty of taxpayers suffering , they directed me to marine patrol or wetlands. They actually said it was the MP fault things were out of control on the lake. I told the woman that the Governor is putting the MP in a no win situation.

Basically he is passing the buck and not dealing with the situation. I heard him speak at a business dinner and was embarrassed that he represents our state. Here he has a room full of business people trying to make his state better and tells stupid irrelevant canned stores he probably gives to the girl scouts. He was supposed to present an award to the fastest growing business in the state and he walked out just before the ceremony. Everyone should call the governors’ office (603)271-2121 and let him know how unhappy we all are.

The guy is hiding behind his desk with a stupid “no decision” on the lake level. Tell him to be a man and address the issue and at least have a response. Tell him to explain to all of us why he did what he did and what he plans to rectify the situation. Tell him to open the dam!

How fast is fast enough
 

Aaaah I dunno about you but I wouldn't call the present rate (2050 CFS) out of the dam as being anything close to "closed". It may be down from the ~2500 max I've seen but it's not like the dam keepers aren't doing anything. The lake is going down. While it's not unreasonable to assume the reduction is out of concern for the downstream residents it might also be out of concern for the dam. I thought rates over 1000 CFS were beyond the normal operation of the dam and achieved only by opening the flood gates. For all I know they've flowed so much water recently that there's some other (structural) reason they can't leave the gate(s) opened.

But let's assume it's because the downstream people can't handle any more flow. Remember that just downsteam are Winnisquam & Silver lakes and when Winni goes up/down a foot, that same quantity of water can cause 5+ ft of rise/fall on Silver lake. Right now Winnisquam is ~1 ft over normal (about what we are). I guess we should just screw them ? Tell you what though, I'll try to arrange a meeting between you and someone downstream. We'll lock you both in a room and you can yell "Me, me, me, me .... My docks, my docks, my docks" until your ears burst. Geesh :(

Well there are certainly more people on winnipesaukee then on winnisquam so I think the upstrem people would win that fight. ;) But seriously we really can't screw the people downstream that much. I mean think how pissed you'd be if you were downstream. :)

One would hope that highly qualified people are in charge of such things and have taken all the consequences of their actions into consideration when making their decisions. I seriously doubt the decision to set the lake outflow is made randomly, or at the Governer's level. I honestly hope he does not meddle with such affairs since he's quite likely not qualified. Managing nature has never been easy or wildly successful; the last person I'd want to even try would be a politician. Well, maybe not the last person, but close.

Flow through the Weirs Channel
 

Last week before they slowed the discharge to about 2000 CFPS from 2500 CFPS, the current in the Weirs channel was very strong and some bigger boats were having a hard time maintaining control going with the flow when smaller boats ahead of them were going very (too) slow. As I was heading towards the Weirs, a 34 foot crusier coming towards me got almost completely sideways and was out of control for 20 to 30 seconds. No contact, but almost a four boat collision.

The reduced flow helps that situation.

R2B

Alright, who moved Tamworth!
 

Actually, Tamworth is very clearly north and east of the Ossipees... :)

Does Newfound have the same 600nwz? I didn't see it listed in the paper but who trusts the paper anyways?

Ken

No NWZ on Newfound
 

Nope, according to the following, Newfound Lake is unaffected;

Saf-C 402.001 Emergency Restriction. Notwithstanding any rule to the contrary, until further notice, not person shall operate a vessel at a speed greater than headway speed within 600 feet from shoreline upon the waters of Silver Lake in the towns of Tilton and Belmont, Lake Winnipesaukee, Lake Winnisquam and Lake Opechee.

Also when I check Newfound's level it's normal;
http://www.des.state.nh.us/RTi_Home/...found+Lake+Dam

when no wake will be lifted
 

for those wondering and haven't checked on this site.... http://www.nh.gov/safety/divisions/s...rol/index.html
this is where they will post it when lifted.

For All Intents and Purposes Its Over
 

Based on what I'm seeing on Winnisquam this afternoon, combined with the projected beautiful weather, it's probably safe to say that, unofficially, it's over in the eyes of the boaters I see right now.

It doesn't matter
 

When it will be lifted is irrelevant.

Here's why:

1. The rule was worthless because it caved to a 600' limit vs. whole lake.
2. It isn't being enforced.
3. Nobody is following it.

NW enforcement
 

In the Gilford/Varney Pt/Glendale Smith Cove area many most people are observing the 600 ft NW. I'd say at least 70 to 80% that go by my house. This afternoon Marine Patrol had 3 boats in the area and they were doing a good job at getting those who weren't doing NW.

Isn't that the area right in front of marina patrol head quarters? I know a lot of people in that cove go NW anyway because theres usually a lot of boats there, and like i said its right in front of marine patrol headquarters. ;)

NW enforcement
 

I take it back. When Marine Patrol isn't around compliance does go dramatically down. Still there are a lot of people making an effort. More than I would have thought.

Little Compliance Here
 

Today we saw the most boat traffic so far this season. I'd estimate maybe 5% obeyed the 600' NWZ, and even that might be generous. We only noticed one MP boat, which went by around 10 A.M. this morning, all day.

Pretty disgusting behavior
 

In our area, maybe 30% obeyed the NWZ, but the 70% that did not just did not care. It was pretty obvious they knew the rule was in effect. It was posted at the ramps, other boaters were going slow and they were being told one by one as compliant boaters went by. After being clear of boaters that forced them to slow down, the captain boneheads would goose the engine and create a huge wake as they came up to a plane.

There was signficant shoreline damage this weekend. In our beach area, the flood conditions over the past weeks has pushed the shoreline back a foot, but there was a lower step of ground still hanging on. The continuous waves today were eating away at what was left of the step. Up to two foot wake, pounding for hours. The state should learn a lesson from this. The 600 ft NWZ idea didn't work. It has to be all or nothing. Too many idiots can't estimate distance or just don't care. Make it simple. No wake. That said - it sure was a premo day to troll the lake at 6 MPH!

My First hand sightings
 

On Saturday afternoon I sat in Gilford opposite Governors Island on a friends beach and our topic of conversation was about what we were seeing. We watched firsthand a very small percentage of boaters obeying the 600' rule. I would venture to say they could have been counted on the fingers of one hand of a bad wood shop teacher. And it was easy for us to estimate distance because we know what the distance is out to the black-top spar bouy out in front of the cottage. We even saw an MP way closer than 600' go by on plane and not in pursuit. We watched as wave after wave tried to lift a dock that is now trying to be held down in place by plastic barrels filled with rocks sitting on it. We watched as the water shot almost ten feet in the air as the waves hit their targets. We watched sections of their beach get sucked back into the lake. Yet amazingly, when night starts to fall and there is no boat traffic, the damaging waves cease. All is calm until it starts up again as soon as the boats start speeding around again the next morning. This firsthand observation tells me that the 600' NWS is not working in any way shape or form. Everyone can thank the ignorant/greedy powers that be. It should have been lakewide and enforced. Again, 4th of July (as big of a Holiday as Memorial Day) 1998 was lakewide NWS and everyone survived. And I don't remember anywhere near as much whining as this year. Back then I had a go-fast boat and I accepted the rule with no question.It amazes me as I watch the boats out there, its true....'You can't fix stupid'

Was there a full Moon this Weekend?
 

Or, maybe Captain Bonehead held a family reunion? I wasn't seeing most people wait until reaching 150 feet from shore, let alone 600. :rolleye1:

And as for nav rules, I was wondering if the MP had declared a temporary moratorium on them. For instance, I was coming back past No.3, running at no wake speed, and four boats came by the other way on plane. I think that one of them might have given me 75 feet of clearance; the rest were well inside that. I figure that one came within 25 feet. :eek: As for stand-on vs. give-way boat, well, I just gave up on that and settled for making sure Capt. Bonehead and Co. missed me!

It's not as though there's anything on the lake that could cause me much of any trouble (barring a direct impact :eek: ), but it is a bit discouraging to have showing a little common courtesy turn one into a target!:(

I did see a great deal of MP activity over the weekend, but it seemed to be concentrated around the Eagle Island channel. At one point, I saw four MP boats, all occupied, and they could have used a dozen more!

There was one bright spot, though. I was heading between Governor's Island and the mainland to go under the bridge, and the good captain came up behind me like a bat out of h*ll, and started to pass me as he came off plane. What he didn't see was the small MP boat on the other side of my boat! As the MP made the "pinch", people on the shore line, and then the other boats in the area, started clapping and cheering. The good captain's face turned an amazing shade of purple!:D

Anyway, let's hope that things turn a little less crazy next weekend!

Silver Duck

I think a lot of people saw the weirs beach lake level sign was reading full lake, so people were not doing the no wake because that isn't all that high, also 600ft is somewhat hard to judge.

I stop going head way speed in Paugus Bay when the 41ft MP boat was going full speed setting a HUGE wake maybe 200 ft from Big Island (1 of the island in PB.) He wasn't going after anyone he no lights or siren, i am thinking that the "NWZ" will be gone some time this week

Useless Bureaucrats in Concord
 

I'd just like to extend my personal thanks to all the inconsiderate boneheads in the cruisers that gave me all the gifts of their 4'+ wakes all weekend. When I think of a way to return the favor, believe me, I will.

Now that the carnival is over and the tourists are all gone it's time to drop the hammer on these bureaucrats in Concord that are responsible for their lack of attention to these issues. DES has a mission to protect the shoreline around the lake. One weekend's worth of Captain Carver's wakes have done years worth of shoreline erosion. The ironic part of all this is that if one wanted to now repair the damage done over this one weekend, it would take an act of Congress to get the permit.

Time to start writing letters to the Governor and head of DES, Dept. of Safety, and State Reps and Senators.

Worst thing is had the NWZ been lifted there probably would have been less damage to the shore. People have no idea that no wake means no wake, I live in a no wake zone and see people putting up 1-2 fooot wakes because they are "going slow" like they are suppossed to and the bigger the boat the worse it is.

Seaplane Pilot do you have email or snail mail addresses of any of the above mentioned that you could post?? Maybe if the info were readily available here many would take the oppportunity to write. Thanks in advance if you do!

To what purpose would you write? Isn't this pretty much over? The last report I saw, the Governor was enjoying a 74% approval rating. It seems like he made a lot of popular choices during this wet spring.

On May 25, when the 600' rule was announced the lake was near peak at around 505.40 and now it's around 504.60, that's 10" lower. It's only about 4" above normal and falling like a rock.

Because doing nothing is not my style. KonaChick: I'll try to find the addresses and post them here.

Addresses for the bureaucrats
 

A lot of them can be found on this website: http://www.nh.gov

Office of the Governor
State House
25 Capitol Street
Concord, NH 03301

(603)271-2121
(603)271-7680 (fax) E-mail via link on website: http://www.nh.gov/governor/contactus.htm

Department of Safety
Commissioner Richard M. Flynn
James H. Hayes Safety Building
33 Hazen Drive
Concord, NH 03305
Commissioners Office: 603-271-2791


Division of Safety Services
David T. Barrett, Director
Bureau of Marine Patrol
31 Dock Road
Gilford, NH 03249
marinepatrol@safety.state.nh.us
603-293-2037
603-293-0096 (fax)

Wetlands Bureau
PO Box 95
Concord NH 03302
(603) 271-2147
wetmail@des.state.nh.us

Wetlands Bureau

The mission of the Wetlands Bureau is to protect, maintain and enhance the environmental quality in New Hampshire through the powers set forth in RSA 482-A to regulate impacts to those areas "wherever the tide ebbs and flows" or "freshwater flows or stands."

Time to refresh your memories with your own mission statement DES!

Thanks! :)

Hummmm
 

Seaplane Pilot, Thanks for posting the addresses....and I plan to write and complain......

But we all have to remember one thing....We can complain all we want but in the end the guys with the power are going to do what ever they want....and in that case of politics it is going to be whatever the biggest contributor to there campaign wants..........

And lets face it this was all politcal........

Weirs Bridge says we're at full lake
 

Going under the bridge yesterday, the gauge reflected exactly full lake. The water line was right at the red mark. We wondered why the 600 ft rule was still in effect.

You may have passed it at low tide. The lake has a 3" tide as measured in Alton Bay, if memory serves.

I wondered why the 600' NWZ was still in effect for the +4" most folks agree the lake level was this weekend too. Seems kinda silly for 4". I saw no sumberged docks and find it hard to believe 4" of extra water is going to make a whole lot of difference on the wake a typical Carver produces at optimum plowing speed.

I don't think that sign is very accurate, especially when there's a big current in there. According to this site, there's still a few inches to go to reach full lake.

http://www.des.state.nh.us/rti_data/wein3_TABLE.HTML

BTW if you look at the table on that site, last night (6/18) at 3AM the lake dropped a full inch in one hour. That seems a little weird.

Check your link, it did not drop an inch in that hour, it did not change at all. I think you were looking at the air temp.

Oops, I meant 6/19

From the chart:


06/19/2006 03:00 67.8 504.60 0.00
06/19/2006 02:00 67.9 504.68 0.00

504.68-504.60 = .08 which is about an inch

Still a bit high
 

The lake is still a bit higher than normal for this time of year though not excessively so. Look at the graph below and I'd say another 1.5" of drop would put the lake into the "normal" range.

http://www.des.state.nh.us/Dam/graph/graph2006.htm

Probably by Thursday or Friday
 

I think that the 600' NWZ will be lifted by Thursday or Friday at the latest. There wasn't much observence of the rule this past weekend. Most schools finish up this week and vacations will be starting and the level should be close to full lake. So, I would expect the state to lift the ban well before the weekend.

i agree, the lake is now almost "normal" and people weren't doing it anyway.
if not this weekend def. by the 4th

I think I heard on the radio this morning that it was lifted as of today. I'm not 100% sure, so use this info at your own risk.

Stil in effect according to MPHQ
 

According to the dispatcher on duty at MP Headquarters, the no-wake requirement was still in effect as of 10:00 this morning.

Verification can always be made during regular business hours by calling Headquarters at (603) 293-2037.

Perhaps they do plan to lift it today or sometime soon, however that information obviously has not made it to Headquarters as of yet.

Skip

My sources tell me it was lifted today
 

This was from a news room.

This was on WMUR

http://www.wmur.com/news/9403996/detail.html

Looks like it was lifted.

Looks like the 600' NWZ is over....
 

Just got this off the Concord Monitor...

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...MPLATE=DEFAULT

Jun 21, 9:21 AM EDT

State drops emergency boat speeds order

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) -- The state has dropped emergency boat speed limits put in place on four lakes after last month's flooding raised water levels.

The Department of Safety says effective immediately, the 600-foot headway speed limit rule no longer applies on Silver Lake in the towns of Tilton and Belmont, Lake Winnipesaukee, Lake Winnisquam, and Lake Opechee.

The order was enacted because high water covered many docks, wharves, stumps and rocks on the shoreline, making them boating hazards.

The state says the usual 150-foot no wake rule near shorelines now applies.

Woodsy

Good news for boaters.....
 

......now hopefully someone will inform MP Headquarters in Gilford so they give out the correct information! :(

Officially speaking ... not
 

And while they're at it, post the info on the "official site" where they still have the emergency NWZ declaration.
http://www.nh.gov/safety/divisions/s...rol/index.html

FWIW I note that we're now "in the blue" on this chart
http://www.des.state.nh.us/Dam/graph/graph2006.htm
so it's not surprising it's been lifted.

No-wake lifted
 

See Laconia Citizen

:)
LINK to CITIZEN story

Just checked MP web page
 

The articles say its over but the MP web page is still not reflecting the news.......

Woo Hoo !! Been waiting since last October to get her wet !! :)

Hummmmmm
 

All the talk last week in the media about the NWZ being rescinded.....But today I looked at the MP web page and it is still not posted there.....Anybody know why?

Time and Resources
 

They probably do not have the time and resources to do it immediately... probably not considered that important at this time.

Officially Recinded!!
 

i just happened to check the NHMP site and it's listed now as RESCINDED on the homepage

http://www.state.nh.us/safety/divisions/ss/index.html

ruh oh.....
 

Yikes looked at the lake level....have there been any rumors around the lake of heading back to a NWZ condition on the lake....

lake levels
 

Doesn't seem that there is amy attempt to bring down the level. Our dock is allmost under again and no drop at all in the last week

They are trying
 

They are trying to bring the lake down they keep opening the dam in increments.... the problem is everytime the open it...it rains more.....I don't think the problem is being ignored..... it just one of those dog chasing its tail things.........

If you happen to be travelling west on Rte 140 in Tilton, and look to the right as you cross the Winnipesaukee river, you will see a house on the shore of the river with a dock. In the past that dock has had a lot of space between bottom of dock and water. Not so much space this year, still! Outflow from Winnipesaukee had a direct effect on Opechee, Winnisquam, Silver Lake (still very high as of a few weeks ago), the Winnipesaukee river, and of course the Merrimack. As others have said, don't expect a big drawdown as long as we keep getting the rain in buckets, even if it is from scattered storms. Winnipesaukee watershed is huge.

Just like yesterday......
 

The dam was open what looked, to my untrained eye, a decent amount - the rapids looked like they'd be fun to take a quick ride on! - and what happened? Rain! I don't know how much, we were in the car heading home when it started but when we stopped for supper in Rochester it was coming down in sideways torrents!:rolleye1: