Scum of the Earth...
and
Lake

Yesterday, Daveo posted one his, as always, excellently written blogs about meeting up with an inspector checking for unwanted organisms being carried from one lake to another. I commented that it was interesting and that I had been thinking of a blog along similar lines. This would be that blog.

As paddlers, we probably don't think much about our bilge water carrying unwanted critters from one body of water to another. We seldom (at least around here) cross international lines. Certainly, I don't paddle in the Amazon one day, the arctic the next and in my home waters the following day. We do, however, often go between Lake Michigan and any number of inland lakes and rivers without much thought. Sometimes, one or more of those places leaves our boat with a gift of scum on our hulls.While we are careful to clean our boats (even using bleach) before a pool session, not enough of us remember to clean off this scum when taking our boats to another body of water. A small effort, to be sure, but one that just might prevent another plant or animal that we don't want around from getting into another lake.

So, wash your hands, wash your boat, sit up straight and use torso rotation. Paddle clean and...

Paddle safe...
DS