Cleaning kayaks helps cut down on invasives in lake
MUDDY CREEK TWP — Friends in kayaking Joellen Shever, Cathryn Crego and Ginny Lotz-Kautzman, have gone on many free tours of Lake Arthur at Moraine State Park, but paid back the park with some scrubbing on Friday morning, April 19.
Natalie Simon, environmental education specialist at Moraine State Park, said park staff normally cleans the park’s kayaks before the programs it hosts on Lake Arthur. Simon said with the success of previous volunteer work days in mind, the park staff put a call out to see if anyone would help with the annual task.
“We said we've had a lot of positive comments from people we take kayaking, so we thought we'd ask,” Simon said. “It's the first time we have invited volunteers.”
Shever, Crego and Lotz-Kautzman were the only ones to attend the cleaning Friday, but their help was still appreciated by the park staff, because there were almost a dozen kayaks that needed to be cleaned in preparation for summer.
Mike Shaffer, environmental education specialist at Moraine State Park, said it’s important for everyone to clean their own kayaks, especially when taking them into different bodies of water, because of the bacteria they collect while on a float.
“With ‘invasives,’ it’s a major problem,” Shaffer said. “Once you get them, it’s hard to get rid of them. Even if you just go to another lake, you could be bringing one along.”
Shaffer, Simon and the three volunteers sprayed the kayaks down with water before scrubbing them with soap, rinsing them again and drying them with towels, so the park staff could put protective coating on the underside of each vessel.
Shever said she felt compelled to help out with the kayak cleaning Friday, because of the number of times she has cruised Lake Arthur for free over the years. She said she appreciates being able to use kayaks at the park.
“It’s easier than owning your own kayak and having to bring it out,” Shever said.
With kayaking events starting at Moraine in June, Shever said the cleanup day Friday helped her get in the spirit of summer. Lotz-Kautzman, too, said she was excited to kayak regularly again, and participate in park programming once the season really kicks in.
“We just meet friends and go out every Sunday,” Lotz-Kautzman said.
