Grand Lake St. Marys still hurting despite boating restriction being lifted

Supporters hoping for better days

Cheryl Sheaks, (left), Marvin Schmitt and Juliann Stachler enjoy a day out on Sheaks’ pontoon boat on Sunday, Aug. 29, at Grand Lake St. Marys. State officials downgraded an algae advisory at the lake last week, but still warned against contact with the lake water because of toxic blue-green algae.

Staff photo by Chris Stewart Cheryl Sheaks, (left), Marvin Schmitt and Juliann Stachler enjoy a day out on Sheaks’ pontoon boat on Sunday, Aug. 29, at Grand Lake St. Marys. State officials downgraded an algae advisory at the lake last week, but still warned against contact with the lake water because of toxic blue-green algae.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Photos: Boats on Grand Lake St. Marys

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By Ken McCall, Staff Writer Updated 1:16 AM Monday, August 30, 2010

GRAND LAKE ST. MARYS — The state’s largest inland lake was open for boating again this weekend, but on Sunday — a perfect day for boating — very few boats could be seen on the water.

An algae bloom advisory, which shut down all uses of the 13,500-acre lake July 17, was downgraded last week to a toxin advisory by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, and the state departments of health and natural resources. The latest advisory allows recreational boating, but still warns against direct contact with the water.

The change, however, wasn’t enough to lure many boaters back on the lake. Where two years ago, many dozens of boats could be seen on the water on a weekend afternoon, only about a half dozen were visible Sunday, Aug. 29.

Just before noon, Don Davis of Washington Twp. was the only boater to be seen at the St. Marys Boat Club basin.

Davis, 72-year-old the vice commodore of the boat club, was out cleaning his 23-foot sailboat, the Holiday Hotel, but wasn’t planning to take it out.

“I haven’t been out on the lake for over a month,” Davis said, with a shake of his head.

The unprecedented algae bloom released high levels of microcystin, a liver toxin, killed thousands of fish and caused bad odors.

Davis said the toxic algae has been devastating to the 80-family boat club.

“About half the members in the basin pulled their boats out,” Davis said. “Some of them have gone to Lake Erie, and some to Indian Lake. We hope most of them will return, but it’s impacting the club terribly.”

Still, Davis — along with others interviewed at the lake — is looking for the lake to turn around.

The state is going to try a couple of experiments to help the water quality, he said, and everyone is hopeful.

“We’re hoping for a better fall,” he said. “We’re hoping to have lots of boats out over Labor Day. And next year, we’re expecting another boating season. I mean, we’re not giving up on it at all. We’re hanging in here.”

Randy Pace, the service manager for Kozy Marina, said business is a small fraction of what it was two years ago, before the algae started causing problems.

Daily gas sales now are about one sixth of what they were in 2008, said Pace, standing in the cavernous and deserted display room for pontoon boats.

The various bans have not only hurt businesses directly on the water, but others as well, he said.

“It’s had a ripple effect in the surrounding area,” Pace said. “Now you go into town, and it’s just locals. It seems a little strange — almost like we’ve been deserted.”

The marina is selling T-shirts (“I Survived the Blue Green Algae Bloom. Now What?”) and wrist bands to raise money for lake restoration.

“We’re trying to do anything we can at this point,” he said.

A few minutes later, a speed boat pulled in for gas.

Chuck Christman of Englewood and his family were coming in from the lake, and had no complaints.

“We were out last night and this morning,” Christman said. “I think it looks pretty good. The smell isn’t there anymore.”

It was good enough that Christman’s son, Jason Lawson, of Sidney, was shopping for a pontoon boat. He had his eye on a red-trimmed Aqua Patio.

“We’re committed to this lake,” said the 35-year-old vice president of operations for Kennedy Manufacturing. “It’s our lake. It’s Ohio’s, and we’ve got to support Ohio.”

Cheryl Sheaks and friends were having a great time on the lake Sunday.

Sheaks, who lives on the lake’s north side, was taking her pontoon boat out Sunday afternoon and offered a ride.

The water was smooth, the day was fine, and there was no smell.

“It was a nasty, nasty smell we had back in July,” Sheaks said. “You didn’t want to be here then.”

She’d never seen anything like it. In the late spring, Sheaks said, the lake water was very clear and everyone was looking forward to a great summer.

Then, in the middle of June, she said, “all hell broke loose.”

The bloom turned into a thick, smelly scum.

“It was a different kind of algae,” Sheaks said. “It felt like you needed a snowplow on the front of the boat. You cut through it and then it sucked back together and it looked like you’d never even broke the water plane.”

But this weekend was a different story.

“We’ve been out Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and it was almost like it was before,” Sheaks said. “I think everybody is kind of pumped up to get back on the water.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2393 or kmccall@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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