Isn't it amazing just how fast time can fly! It's hard to believe that we are moving into what Nat King Cole enthusiastically sang about in his 1963 Top 10 hit - "Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer!" I think that is especially true here in the Iowa Great Lakes. Lazy-Hazy-Crazy...yup that's what we have!
Time to kick back and enjoy family and friends as we recreate on these wonderful lakes...all the while thinking and responding to our task at hand: protect these beautiful waters for today and tomorrow. It is the mission and the goal of the OPA.
Let's Do Our Part
Part of that comes through educating all people about the dangers of aquatic hitchhikers. The DNR has a slogan that all of us can follow: Clean. Drain. Dry. That is a great way to protect Iowa lakes and rivers from these terrible aquatic dangers. We are such a mobile society moving from area to area, often taking boats out of one body of water and then trailering them to another body and maybe even another in the same weekend. That's where the problem can come in. People can unknowingly be harboring these aquatic hitchhikers on their boat, in their motor, live well, bilge or even transom well.
Before leaving a ramp, drain all water from boats and equipment, and remove all drain plugs. Before moving to another body of water, spray the boat (including levels and motor) and trailer with hot, high-pressure water. Make sure everything is clean-no mud or vegetation. Even better, if moving to another spot, dry the entire rig for at least five days.
Congratulations to OPA
Congratulations are in order for the OPA and its gift of conservation land located just south of the Gull Point to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources earlier this spring. This land, which was donated to the OPA in the 1980s, is a pristine wetland area that makes the Gull Point area complete.
Time to kick back and enjoy family and friends as we recreate on these wonderful lakes...all the while thinking and responding to our task at hand: protect these beautiful waters for today and tomorrow. It is the mission and the goal of the OPA.
Let's Do Our Part
Part of that comes through educating all people about the dangers of aquatic hitchhikers. The DNR has a slogan that all of us can follow: Clean. Drain. Dry. That is a great way to protect Iowa lakes and rivers from these terrible aquatic dangers. We are such a mobile society moving from area to area, often taking boats out of one body of water and then trailering them to another body and maybe even another in the same weekend. That's where the problem can come in. People can unknowingly be harboring these aquatic hitchhikers on their boat, in their motor, live well, bilge or even transom well.
Before leaving a ramp, drain all water from boats and equipment, and remove all drain plugs. Before moving to another body of water, spray the boat (including levels and motor) and trailer with hot, high-pressure water. Make sure everything is clean-no mud or vegetation. Even better, if moving to another spot, dry the entire rig for at least five days.
Congratulations to OPA
Congratulations are in order for the OPA and its gift of conservation land located just south of the Gull Point to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources earlier this spring. This land, which was donated to the OPA in the 1980s, is a pristine wetland area that makes the Gull Point area complete.