Copper Sulfate will be applied to Kinderhook Lake
Wednesday morning, June 12, 2024
See the FAQ page for information and warnings
Copper Sulfate will be applied to Kinderhook Lake
Membership and Merchandise Days will be held from 9:00 AM to Noon at 9 OLD West Shore Drive in Valatie (the tan metal building with green trim and roof) on the following Saturdays:
April 6 & 20 – Membership Days
May 4 & 18 – Membership and Merchandise Days
You can support the many programs that help keep Kinderhook Lake a beautiful community resource by purchasing a KLC membership and making donations to our dedicated funds. At the same time, you pick up your membership poster, launch gate key, and car/trailer sticker; no more waiting for them to arrive by snail mail. Laptops will be available for you to access our new Online Membership and Donation Form. This is also an opportunity to meet and chat with a few KLC Directors.
Please note that KLC logo merchandise will only be available on the May dates.
Please be advised that we will begin to refill Kinderhook Lake on Monday, April 1, 2024, in accordance with our DEC Drawdown Permit. Changes in the water level during the refill are weather dependent: more rain & snow melt = quicker refill; less rain and snowmelt = slower refill.
As of 2024, motor boat operators born after January 1, 1978 must possess a NYS Boating Safety Certificate. Boating safety courses are available online or you can attend the following in-person course.
BOATING SAFETY COURSE ALERT!
April 21, 2024
CASTLETON BOAT CLUB
8am – 5 pm
You MUST register on-line with the following link: https://www.register-ed.com/ev
As a follow-up to the article on Page 4 of the Winter 2024 KLC News (see post below) about establishing a shoreline buffer (aka rain garden) to filter nutrient runoff from entering our lake, here is an article from Solitude Lake Management that offers guidance into the type of shoreline plants that would do best in New York State. Enjoy and please create or upgrade your own shoreline buffer to help improve our water quality.
Beneficial Buffer Plants for New York State
The latest edition of the KLC News is now available on the Newsletters page.
It’s chock full of up-to-date information about how your membership and donation dollars are being put to good use maintaining and improving the lake and the dam.
Don’t miss it.
We are currently seeking one KLC member to join the Board of Directors. Directors actively oversee programs that operate, maintain, and upgrade the dam, maintain high water quality standards, manage the spread of aquatic invasive and native weed species, maintain a positive sport-fish population and habitat, promote recreational water-sports activities, raise funds to support these programs, and much more. If you’ve always wondered how and why it all happens at the lake, you can become part of the decision-making team. Please see Qualifications for KLC Directors and learn how to apply at kinderhooklakecorp.org/board/newdirector.
Thanks to all who submitted photos for the 2024 Calendar Contest. We were thrilled with the overwhelming response and quality of the submissions. Of course, we could only select 12 monthly photos and one cover photo for the calendar and we congratulate the winners: Ann Mueller, Joel Potts, Ron Rich, Judy Kelleher, Deborah Wilens, Amy Stephenson, Jennifer Clark, David Lauzon, Dawn Francoeur, Prudence Mohr, John Brady, Tina Decker, and Robin Langer. Honorable Mentions go to Anne Marie Mink, Marc Martino, Donna Gedeon, Eugene Tava, Karl Diehl, and Lisa Nichols. We are now taking orders for the new 2024 KLC Calendar while supplies last. You can reserve yours by sending an email to klphotocontest@gmail.com. Calendars are $20 each or $18 each for two or more. Funds raised through the sale of calendars will be used to support KLC’s programs that manage and improve Kinderhook Lake and the Nivers Dam.
Thanks for your support.
While it’s sad to see the water level dropping to winter levels, just remember how much fun you had this past summer and that next summer will be here before you know it. Fall is a beautiful season and is also time for a few important reminders.
- Do NOT rake leaves into the lake bed, as rotting leaves create nutrients for weed and algae growth. Also, if you can, please remove fallen leaves from the lake bed.
- Do NOT throw brush or branches into the lake, as they end up floating to the dam, clogging the sluice gate debris rack and inhibiting control of the water level.
- If you have any shoreline projects, please complete them this Fall, as the water can rise quickly in the Spring depending on snowmelt and rain. Plus, our DEC Permit requires that we raise the lake back to summer levels as soon as the ice is off the lake in the Spring.
- Please secure any outdoor furniture and loose equipment. In the Spring, we often find deck chairs, carpets, water toys, dock parts, and boat and fishing gear stuck in the sluice gate debris rack at the dam.
This is an early reminder that on October 15 we will begin to lower the lake to winter level. The water will be lowered to approximately 52″ below the average summer level in accordance with our DEC permit. The purpose of the drawdown is to protect shoreline areas and docks from damage during ice and snow thaw. The lower lake level has the added benefit of allowing time for shoreline and dock maintenance projects, although we suggest you complete any such projects in the fall as it is often difficult to control the rising water level in the spring due to rain and snowmelt. The speed of the drawdown depends on the weather – a lot of rain will slow the drawdown, while little rain will hasten the speed. We reverse the process and return the lake to summer water level following ice-out in the spring.
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