Lake Doctor | A Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams Podcast
Welcome to Lake Doctor: A Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams Podcast, your go-to source for understanding and preserving the health of our local lakes. Join hosts Dr. Nate Bosch, an expert in limnology, and Suzie Light, a lifelong resident and passionate advocate for our aquatic environments, as they dive deep into the challenges facing Kosciusko County's lakes.
Dr. Nate Bosch grew up in Michigan and received his doctorate in 2007 from the University of Michigan in limnology. With 18 peer-reviewed publications spanning research from the Great Lakes to smaller inland lakes and streams, Nate has been awarded the prestigious Chandler Misner Award twice by the International Association of Great Lakes Research. At Grace College, Nate is a professor in the environmental science program, dean of the School of Science and Engineering, and leads the Lilly Center team, serving the local community with dedication and expertise.
Each episode tackles these critical issues head-on, featuring insightful interviews with our partners, engaging Q&A sessions, and fun segments for the science enthusiasts among us. You'll get a behind-the-scenes look at the impactful research and education efforts spearheaded by the Lilly Center and discover how we can all contribute to safeguarding our precious freshwater ecosystems.
Tune in bi-monthly starting June 2024, and join the conversation by leaving comments or emailing us at lakes@grace.eduwith your questions and ideas. Supported by the K21 Health Foundation, Rick and April Sasso, and DreamOn Studios, this podcast aims to inspire and inform the next generation of water-literate citizens and environmental stewards. Learn more about our work and how to support us at lakes.grace.edu.
Lake Doctor | A Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams Podcast
The Hidden Economy of Lakes and Streams: A Deep Dive with Kosciusko County Visitors Bureau
Ready to explore the enchanting world of lake tourism and its profound economic impact? Join us as we chat with Cori Humes, a passionate tourism advocate from Northern Indiana who shares her incredible journey from growing up in Marshall County to leading the Kosciusko County Visitor Bureau. Cori’s contagious enthusiasm for her region paints a vivid picture of more than 100 stunning lakes that offer everything from exhilarating jet skiing adventures to serene kayak trips, making both residents and visitors fall in love with Kosciusko County’s natural beauty.
Safety and community engagement take center stage as we uncover Kosciusko County's dedication to ensuring its lakes are safe and inviting. Learn about the proactive steps taken to regularly test water quality, safeguarding against E. coli and harmful algae toxins. Discover how the “Visit Kosciusko County” brand, alongside fun initiatives like the waterway passport program, not only draws in tourists but also fosters a sense of community pride and involvement. These efforts showcase a vibrant, welcoming environment that’s as inviting as it is secure.
Dive into the science of lake conservation and stratification with us as we unpack strategies to preserve these natural treasures. From nutrient management using native plants to understanding the layered dynamics of lakes through a delightful ice cream cake analogy, this episode is packed with insights. Cori and I discuss the county’s innovative tourism strategies, highlighting group tours and environmental stewardship that not only protect these waters but also enrich the visitor experience. It’s a testament to the harmonious blend of tourism, science, and community spirit that thrives in Kosciusko County.
Learn more about the Lilly Center's work at https://lakes.grace.edu/.
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Thanks for listening to the Lake Doctor podcast. I'm your host, susie Light, and I get to share some stories and talk about our beautiful lakes with my friend, dr Nate Bosch. Nate, you received your degree in limnology from the University of Michigan, is that correct?
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's right. So, unlike oceanography, though, limnology is the study of freshwater aquatic systems. Freshwater aquatic systems. On this podcast, we dive into lake science. We meet folks who are passionate about lakes, just like Susie and I are, and we have a lot of fun together.
Speaker 1:Visit lakesgraceedu, where you can learn more about the topics in our episode and support the Lily Center's work.
Speaker 2:In today's episode we have Cori Humes. She leads our local county visitor bureau and we're going to be talking about lake tourism.
Speaker 1:We are so excited about today's episode of the Lake Doctor podcast. Today we're joined by Corey Humes. Corey, we are so excited that you are here today, my friend. It's good to see you. Tell us a bit about yourself.
Speaker 3:Thank you both for having me. I do appreciate it so much About me. I'm a Northern Indiana native, hoosier through and through. I grew up in not so far away community of Marshall County area and I have loved Indiana my entire life and my family currently are doing their best to explore the state that we've never. There's so many places among the state that I've never did as a tourism expert it would make sense that you would do that.
Speaker 3:Susie, thank you for putting that together, because that's exactly what I do. So when we're, we've been doing that. So I have known Warsaw and Kosciuszko County my entire life. I was a Plymouth High School grad, so of course Warsaw was a, you know, competitor rival. We do that Football, basketball, all of it track.
Speaker 3:Um, my husband's a graduate as well, but what happened was a few years ago, um, my husband started a position here in warsaw with the city of warsaw and my predecessor at the kaskiasco county convention visitors bureau, who was leaving to go to another DMO, as in our other community, said to me she goes Corey, I think you should apply for this position. And at that point in my life I was like, oh, I don't know, you know, thinking to myself but I did, I did the thing I thought, I bombed my interview I don't know. I've shared this with my team and the board and I happened to get this position. And now I've been in the most welcoming community I've ever been in here in Kosciuszko County and I sometimes will get cheer jerked up about that two and a half years later. But, susie, nate, you guys have been so welcoming since day one.
Speaker 1:Well, you've been a blessing to us.
Speaker 3:Thank, you, susie, but it has been a whirlwind to get to know this community and what it's about. And I just have two kiddos. They're in the Warsaw school system and we spend all our time in the area when we're not exploring elsewhere.
Speaker 1:What specifically made you say Kosciuszko County is the right place for our family?
Speaker 3:besides employment, besides employment all the things that we can do, just in general, growing up knowing the village at Winona Lake has always been such a destination in itself over the past 20-plus years, a destination in itself over the past 20 plus years. Growing up knowing that there are so many things to do here in Kosciuszko County, exploring myself, coming this way, knowing that if I wasn't dining in a local restaurant there, we were here doing that, not going that far away. We at that time I think it was, and I hope this is okay to share it was a calling, it was a meant to be, and it has been the best decision that I have made that it just God made this happen and it was meant to be here. But there was just so many reasons why I just love this community, I love my hometown, hometown, but Warsaw and Kosciuszko just has something that I hope a lot of people that have moved here feel that same way.
Speaker 1:I'm not sure how to describe that feeling, however, but even us that grew up here, yeah, and feel that way about our community. I I recently told somebody I'm in Kosciuszko County by choice, exactly, not just because I happen to land here. Yes, exactly. So, corey, as a tourism expert, we know that tourism draws a lot of people to our community. What are the main draws? Why do people come here to visit?
Speaker 3:One of the number one reasons. One of the number one is our lakes. One of the number one reasons. One of the number one is unique destinations Mentone with the egg. There are so many different reasons people visit but from what we see is lakes are such that hook because we have the over 100 lakes.
Speaker 2:Right, and they go across the entire county. Yes, and it's not just specific to Wynonna and Warsaw.
Speaker 3:We remember Wawasee in Syracuse has the largest lake in indiana and then we have the deepest lake. So those are big hooks. People like to hear those, but it is an exploration of whatever they're doing either adventuring um on a ski boat or using a jet ski or using any of those kayak a kayak, a canoe there's so many different ways you can explore or all the way to a big tour boat like the SSL Lily Pad or the Dixie on Webster. There's just so many ways somebody can easily explore our waterways, which I think makes us unique to that that you can access those so easily, to that that you can access those so easily.
Speaker 2:I like to say you can go fast or slow. Warm weather, cold weather, with other people or by yourself. There's so many opportunities on the lakes.
Speaker 3:And you don't have to live on a lake to be able to participate in the lake. Which, I think, which makes it so unique to our destination here is that you don't have to live on a lake, you don't have to own a boat to be able to explore and see what we have to do here.
Speaker 1:So tourism has a big impact. People say, oh well, the town of Syracuse grows in the summertime by four times its normal population because of tourism. But what are the benefits to our community due to tourism?
Speaker 3:That's a great question and what's unique is we get to do a study with that specifically because we understand tourism has that impact and from studies that we our last study that we have done it provides $272 million in investment travel $272 million in investment in economic impact to Kosciuszko County.
Speaker 1:Yes in tourism.
Speaker 3:Either as basic as if they're just stopping to eat and dine in a restaurant, to staying overnight, to visiting our many types of attractions, from public arts to waterways. That is an enormous impact to our. That is just the tourism impact that we have done through our studies.
Speaker 1:So then we look at like economic impact. You even did a study at the Lilly Center about the economic impact of lakes.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So we knew that some of our residents and visitors see the value of lakes just intrinsically, but others are going to need to see the dollars and cents of it to know the importance. And so we wanted to quantify that. And so what we did was we looked at three different categories of economic impact related to our lakes. The one was lake specific. These would be like marinas and boat manufacturers. The other was lake influenced, which would be things like gas stations and convenience stores, restaurants. And then the third was property taxes. And so the first two categories.
Speaker 2:What we did is we worked with owners of businesses across the county and we asked them hey, let's look at your annual sales, what portion of those are due to Lake's business?
Speaker 2:Maybe it's based on during the summer months, maybe it's based on just your own knowledge of who's coming to purchase your products or to use your services.
Speaker 2:And so we gathered all of that information and obviously, for a grocery store or restaurant, that lake traffic is gonna come primarily in the summer months, and then they have other income coming at other times of the year. And then the property tax part of it that also needed to be distinguished what of our properties are due to the structures and the land themselves, versus what portion of that value, and thus the property tax generated is inflated due to the proximity of the lake that's nearby. And so we looked at different neighborhoods that were far away from lakes, we looked at channel front lake, front lake view properties, ones that are across the street from a lake, and looked at all of those different values as kind of a per square foot value, and then we were able to attribute just the lake portion of those values. So we add up the business, we add up the property tax, and all of that together was $313 million every single year coming into Kosciuszko County due to our lakes.
Speaker 1:Said another way, if the lakes were to dry up, or if we turned into a lake that had a terrible blue-green algae problem.
Speaker 2:Right, yes, Though the number would come down. We also, on the flip side, found in our research that as we improve the quality of these lakes, that economic impact will go up. It's also important to note that that $313 million is a conservative number. We only included the data in the study that we were able to get from those business owners.
Speaker 1:Some business owners decided not to give that financial information to us, and so they weren't included in the study, and so we know that the impact is actually higher than that in the study, and so we know that the impact is actually higher than that. Wow, thank you both for doing those studies. That's really makes our community, our county, so unique. Not only are we home to over a hundred lakes, but we've got a dynamic impact on the economy thanks to the work you're both doing.
Speaker 3:Yes, Thank you, and that's an incredible impact, um, and it also impacts jobs. We've seen through that study that um tourism has brought over 2,500 jobs through. That has impacted that many jobs in that, and it was this study was done in 2022 that many jobs have been impacted that year through tourism. So that's just a nice way to say that, hey, we're growing economic impact through tourism, but it's also supporting many jobs in the community too, which is important.
Speaker 1:So you're recognizing the amenities in each of the communities. You want to talk about some of those, like what are the best amenities in our community?
Speaker 3:Oh, there's so many things, especially when it comes to lakes. But in our summer months there's so much, there's so many things, especially when it comes to lakes, um, but in our summer months there's so much, there's almost so much water recreation to do. So we visitors love visiting the dixie sternwheeler down in um, north webster, in north webster, thank you. And it's only seven dollars a person to ride the boat and you get a historic narrated tour of the lake. And it's only $7 a person to ride the boat and you get a historic narrated tour of the lake. And it's been there since what? 1929. And they are offered rides every day of the week, between Memorial Day and September.
Speaker 2:And I love how that lake has islands in it with houses, with cottages on the islands. That's a really unique feature.
Speaker 3:Agreed, very unique and as well as even Oakwood. In Syracuse they have a tour boat and they do this on Friday and Saturdays and it maxes, I think, like 44 people. We took a. We have an East region tourism group that focuses on tourism in the East region of Indiana and we had the opportunity to host at Oakwood and we took them on the Oakwood resort boat and they love it at Oakwood and we took them on the Oakwood resort boat and they love it.
Speaker 3:Every time we have other members of our state that are versions of us throughout the state. They want to do a boat ride. They want to be on a lake. That is so. It is very unique to us that we have so many lakes. They want to do that because it's not as big of an attraction in their destination, so we're able to provide that. But there are just so many amenities and so many things that can do from in our hotels, in our accommodations and even down to, if you wanted to stay in a vacation home. We have so many opportunities or so many available throughout the lakes that people can stay in so many different ways too.
Speaker 1:So one of the things I know that happens during the summer there are Indiana's only ski competition. What is all that?
Speaker 3:about. Yes, our friends at the Lake City Skiers, yes, perfect. Yeah, indiana's only competitive water ski show team ski team. But they perform on Hidden Lake in Warsaw Sunday and Tuesday evenings at 630. And that's a free to visitors and residents to check out their performances. And they compete also throughout the nation and in Indiana with other versions of themselves and we have the opportunity to host their national tournament. And they're hoping to grasp the world's tournament in 2027, which would be incredible for Kosciuszko County and that's unique to us Another economic impact Huge economic Plus fun.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we've taken our family the last couple of years and it's been really interesting. Also, when they started doing the national tournaments, we did some sampling of Hidden Lake, where they do their shows. Yes, because they wanted to be able to promote that to other teams. Look how clean our lake is when you're bringing your competitors to our community Nice science tie in there. Well, hey, it was a perfect sense, it was perfect.
Speaker 1:And you know one of the things that you mentioned testing. You test the lakes in our community, not only the. Tell us about the testing that you do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that's another unique aspect and I'd love to hear what Corey says about how that helps with visitors coming. Unlike any other communities in Indiana that I know of, and probably throughout the Midwestern United States, every single week we sample 16 of our lakes across the county, all the way from the north to the south, east to the west, and we're looking at E to the west and we're looking at e coli levels, we're looking at algae toxin levels.
Speaker 2:These are things that could harm people and pets and we're taking the initiative to keep our people and pets safe and healthy when they're out there using the lakes, by being able to notify whenever there's a problem and give people some really scientifically-based advice on how to safely use those waterways.
Speaker 1:So what happens to a lake if you test, and it tests high for E coli? What action takes place?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so those toxins or E coli levels. We have a notification system for the algae toxin levels and so people opt have a notification system for the algae toxin levels, and so people opt into that notification system, and then they'll get a weekly email with what the levels are, as well as guidance on what to do about those particular levels for their particular lake and E coli levels also as a human health threat potentially. And so we'll then reach out. In addition to the notification system, we'll reach out to the local lake associations and let them know about what's going on, and then they can also let residents know around the lake.
Speaker 1:So what about public beaches?
Speaker 2:We also sample public beaches and notify the public about those as well, if there's any concerns.
Speaker 3:Good. Thank you for keeping us safe. Yes, thank you so much. It means it's into that point. Yes, it impacts the tourism, it impacts visitors knowing and we share it at the visitor center, especially when you're talking one-on-one about where's an opportunity, where's a beach that we're looking to do this, where can I explore and that is something that I like to share and our team shares is that the lily center is doing these tests on a weekly if basis to make sure that what you're swimming and if you bring your pets and your children because we all know sometimes you swallow, that's what happens when you're swimming that it is as safe as it can be to visit. And why, clearly, cascadasco is so important in that is because our lakes are so clear and so uniquely tested and safe for visitors and residents to to use.
Speaker 1:Yes, so lake residents and lake visitors? How? How's the sense of place established? How do you partner with people? What do you do to make us a sense of place for residents and visitors?
Speaker 3:That's a great question. So our goal is to tell a story of Kosciuszko County, what that is. It's encompassing in so many ways and lakes being a major focus in that, but what we love to do is tell stories of what you can do, why you should come and why is a perfect place to live, work and play. That is a stance that we use often. The Khalila Kosciusko brand does so. Our annual visitor guide we do put down it's about 84 pages of you might have brought a sample of that with you.
Speaker 1:I did bring a sample and I'm always promoting our visitor guide. We do put down uh, it's about 84 pages of. You might have brought a sample of that.
Speaker 3:I did bring a sample and I'm always promoting our visitor guide and um, just a little bit of a highlight, our cover photo is a young man from grace, j jack mayor. Oh, the camera from winona wake surf um, he, he showcases, or you can take lessons from him about wake surfing. But our guide here is all encompassing from shopping, dining um recreation, that be water, that be trails, that be arts and culture, which is a huge impact to our why people want to live, work and play here as well. But it's a perfect guide, even if you're thinking of relocating. What that is. What does Kili Kosciusko mean to us as well? So we have this piece, kili Kosciusko, by choice, but it's here to showcase. That is the piece we hand when a visitor comes in or a potential recorder is in our office looking through brochures that would attract somebody so if one of our listeners wanted to pick one of those up, they'd come to they can.
Speaker 3:there's many ways they can do that. They can physically come pick it up at the visitor center, which is located right off of on 111 capitol drive. But an easier way is we also have this digitally on our website. So if you visit, visit casquiascocountyorg, it is digitally there you can view as well, and what's nice about that is we have some videos in there that you can just click and watch, that have some features that our Dream On friends studio friends have created for us on there as well. But that's a great way to do that too, and there's plenty of QR codes if you wanted to utilize that as well right here.
Speaker 1:But it is that piece we like to share, so some of the fun that you have been creating at the Visitors Bureau, things like passports, yes, passports, yes. Want to talk to us about the waterway passport?
Speaker 3:thank you. Yes, um, this is a new passport. We have six currently. This is our seventh. What it is is that you can visit a number of our public access locations. Yes, we have over a hundred lakes, but not all of them have public access, um, some are private. So the goal was to try to find a way and to get visitors to engage in that and it's a fun thing.
Speaker 1:It's a fun activity not just for people individually but families, to do right, of course.
Speaker 3:And what better way to try to win a prize without doing it with your family?
Speaker 3:Because, those are just fun things you can do on the weekend or in an evening together, but the goal is to try to get you to visit these locations. Maybe you've never been before. We have many popular lakes and we have some others, but if you check into at least three locations you can win a waterproof cell phone case, which we all need, and if you visit at least six you can enter to win grand prizes of either a ride on the Grace College boat or a two-person Tippie River Adventures kayak tour down the wonderful Tippecanoe River.
Speaker 2:Those are good incentives.
Speaker 1:They are, I think so too, and it's so much fun because I know there is a really great lake by Milford Wabi Lake. Yes, Wabi, it has a beautiful park and not many people know about it or go there.
Speaker 1:Thanks for mentioning Wabi, so this would be a great incentive to get out and visit some lakes you wouldn't normally be able to do, and it's a neat hook for visitors to our community. Exactly, and you've got some other cool passports that are available on your website. And Corey keeps talking about arts and culture and smiling at me when she does that, because we both serve on the Warsaw Public Arts Commission and so art, and especially art along lakes, is a really important aspect. So when people are visiting they can see some beautiful lakes and art.
Speaker 2:Yes, exactly, did you know that I was artistic? No I'm not. I'm not really, I'm just you're scientific I do write a poem once a year for my kids at christmas, but that's about it that's sweet, that is I like that.
Speaker 3:Oh, but yes, there's so many ways. Thank you for bringing that up.
Speaker 1:One of the things we want to ask you about, Nate, is what can lake residents do to make sure that our lakes stay safe for visitors and that we've got this precious amenity that we care for?
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, when we think about our lake residents, they're obviously living around the lakes, in close proximity to those lakes, and so there's property that they have control over there around the lakes, and so we like to say three things to those lake residents that they can do specifically. One would be looking at the fertilizer that's applied to their. Most people will have a lawn area. Many will have a lawn service that takes care of that for them. So, either checking with their lawn service or, if they're purchasing their own fertilizer and applying it themselves, we like to see zero phosphorus fertilizer, which is helpful. Phosphorus is one of the nutrients that really pushes algae and weeds in our lakes to grow.
Speaker 2:And so we don't want to see extra and excess of those sort of things in our lakes. So less fertilizer and certainly having no phosphorus in the fertilizer is one thing. The second thing would be looking at how they dispose of yard waste. So this could be grass clippings or it could be leaves that come in the fall. We don't want to see those things get into the lake, because when they get into the lake they decompose, the nutrients come out of those things and then we get more weeds and algae to grow, and we've already got plenty of those in our lakes.
Speaker 2:And then the third thing that we like to encourage residents to do around our lakes is creating a filter along the lake shore. And so when you think of water running off a property usually it's sloped towards the lake it's going to bring with it nutrients, maybe from fertilizer, some sediment might be eroding off the property. And if there's a filter strip, if there are some native plants growing along the lake shore, then that will help intersect some of those things so as not to let those nutrients or sediments get into our local lakes so native plants typically have a much deeper root system and then that can also help with erosion of soil into the lake, yeah, so so better root systems, native plants are also designed.
Speaker 2:they're adapted here for our local climate.
Speaker 2:And so they're not going to need as much water, as much nutrients added. They're going to be just fine growing here in Northern Indiana, and so they're going to be best adapted then to be able to create that barrier. And we'll also got to keep in mind here a lot of people when they think about lakes, they think about the views of the lake, right? So you don't want to have just a wall of plants and you no longer can see your lake, and so there's a lot of small stature, low height plants that can be planted along the lake shore, so you can still see the view, but yet you also know that you're protecting your property. And then another feature I just thought about with the plants is it helps keep geese from coming up.
Speaker 1:You can see I was thinking that couldn't you.
Speaker 2:No, I didn't.
Speaker 1:Yes, okay, so that barrier keeps geese from coming on your property, which keeps the geese droppings from washing into the lake.
Speaker 2:Yes, so the Canada goose loves mowed turf grass.
Speaker 3:So they love lawns.
Speaker 2:They can see a long distance, so they're not worried about predators. They love to eat the grass. And then, you're right, they're just dropping all along the way. Those droppings can flow into the lake, which is another nutrient source that we don't want in the lake.
Speaker 1:Plus the E coli, which closes the beach.
Speaker 2:Yes, All interconnected, we say. And those plants along there, the geese? It's not that they couldn't walk through those plants, but they don't want to because they think there might be a predator hiding in those plants. And so it's a visual barrier for geese not to then come up on your property.
Speaker 1:And if you happen to go over by the splash pad at Winona Lake, which is a great tourist attraction, you'll notice that there are plantings along that area to try to deter the geese from coming on and helping themselves to the splash pad. Yeah, we're glad for that. Yes, because it's a tourism attraction.
Speaker 3:It is a big one.
Speaker 1:So do we have a lot of conventions coming here or smaller kinds of groups that tour the area for things other than work?
Speaker 3:Good question thing that we do at the visitor center and all around is we do we have a group tour plan or a planner that's available on our website to view and anyone that does call and is interested in bringing a group for leisure, I would say versus work we put together itineraries for them to visit throughout Kosciuszko County and yes, there's many reasons, from wedding destinations on lakes Lakes are huge for wedding destinations. We know our friends at Oakwood Resort has many, many weddings in their location but yes, we offer that here at the Visitor. What a tour group would like to do, we're hosting a big one here in August that's visiting for multiple days in Kosciuszko. But yes, there's many different ways, from small groups to your typical idea of a motor coach bus which we hosted a small group not a small, but they were visiting from visiting the Lincoln Highway. They had their annual conference in Elkhart but, of course, For our listeners who don't know US 30 was the.
Speaker 1:Lincoln Highway at one time and there are still parts of it that are on Old 30 as well as Highway 30.
Speaker 3:So you had a tour visiting the Lincoln Highway Two days they came, they toured, they were different groups visiting the Lincoln Highway Two days. They came, they toured, they were different groups. They came and did a couple stop destinations like the Chinworth Bridge Trailhead, because there's that Lincoln Highway, old Lincoln Highway kiosk, yeah. So we had some buses, just welcomed them. They went to Grace because we talked about Grace and its impact and it was just fun because it was along the way and they did that in many communities along the 30 in Indiana, but Kosciuszko was part of that. So we do from that welcoming someone for an hour to our area to multiple days. So there's just many ways that we welcome visitors from groups to meetings. If you need visitor information or swag bags for your meetings, we do that too.
Speaker 1:Corey, you are just the most wonderful tourism director that we could have. Your professionalism and your strategic vision for our community has really been a blessing to us. Thank you so much for being here today and sharing with us. We really appreciate that you were here.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much for having me and those kind words. I do appreciate sharing the story of tourism here in Kosciuszko County.
Speaker 2:Hey there, I'm Dr Nate Bosch of the Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams. This is the Word of the Day segment on our podcast series and today's word is stratification. Big word but a pretty simple meaning, as you'll see those of you who are viewing this podcast can see there's an ice cream cake in front of me. Those of you who are listening I'm going to describe it a little bit, what it looks like. We've got Lily Center Blue as an accent around the top and the bottom. I'm going to cut a piece of this ice cream cake out. I'm going to cut a slice out of here because, just like an ice cream cake has distinct layers, and this one happens to have three layers in it, so too are lakes here in Kosciuszko County, indiana, as well as throughout the Midwestern United States. So during the summer months our lakes throughout the Midwest have distinct layers in them, three of those layers. But the top layer is called our epilimnion. When we have a stratified lake during the summer months, that epilimnion it gets the name from epi, meaning surface or top, just kind of like the epidermis of our skin right, the surface of our skin, so epi. So that's going to be a warm water layer up at the top. Warm water is lighter than cold water and so it's getting warmed up by the sun and it's up there at the top. Then you can see we have a middle layer there On our lakes. We call that the metalimnion. In our ice cream cake it's got this kind of chocolate crackle layer in the middle there it's also known as the thermocline, thermocline thermo being temperature, cline, change in temperature, and so it's rapidly changing from the warm water of the epilimnion to the cold water of the bottom layer. So in our ice cream cake that's the chocolate ice cream layer there. That's called in a lake, the hypolimnion. So just like hypothermia, we have hypo, meaning low, or the bottom low temperature. So too, in the hypo-limnion refers to that bottom water layer and that's going to be our cold water layer in the lake. So during the summer months we don't have any mixing between those two layers. We have two distinct layers, the top and the bottom, with that transitional layer in the middle. So what sort of impact does that have on our lakes? The middle, so what sort of impact does that have on our lakes?
Speaker 2:Well, that warm water layer at the top, like what's shown as vanilla ice cream here on our ice cream cake. It's going to be warm, it's going to have lots of oxygen in it. So think, through all the sunlight coming into that top water layer it's going to allow algae, also known as phytoplankton, to do photosynthesis, where there's lots of oxygen being produced in that top water layer. You also have oxygen diffusing from the surface of the lake into that top water layer. Maybe waves will help move that along or wind blowing across will help move that along a little bit more quickly. So lots of oxygen, warm, light, relatively light water on the top. Contrast that with the bottom In our ice cream cake example here, that's our chocolate cake the bottom is going to be cold.
Speaker 2:It's going to have very low amounts of oxygen. There's no way to get oxygen from photosynthesis or from the surface all the way down to the bottom. Instead we're using up oxygen down at the bottom. We have decaying algae from years before, or macrophytes, also known as weeds from years before, even zooplankton or fish that die and sink to the bottom. The bacteria there that are doing the decomposing are using up oxygen in that bottom water layer. So low oxygen. So temperatures in the bottom water layer maybe low oxygen. So temperatures in the bottom water layer maybe in the high 40s to low 50s on the Fahrenheit temperature scale. Temperatures in the top could get all the way up into the mid or upper 80s in the Midwest up in the Epilimnion. So quite a temperature difference. That bottom water layer is going to stay cold all through the area.
Speaker 2:Well, it looks like our ice cream cake's melting here a little bit. So let's move on from summertime to fall and let's talk about fall. So in fall days are getting shorter, less intense sunlight, nights are getting cooler, and so the surface water layer is going to start to cool off and eventually it's going to get close enough in temperature to the surface water layer is going to start to cool off and eventually it's going to get close enough in temperature to the bottom water layer. The apalimnion will get close enough to temperature as the hypolimnion that we have what's called turnover. So no longer will the lake be stratified with the warm water on the top and the cold water on the bottom. We're instead going to move to a lake that's uniform temperature all the way through from top to bottom. And, as I said, our cake here is rapidly melting here in our studio. But you can see, here we've now moved it over and we have turnover, and we actually should take this cake and put it in a blender to get it all mixed up, to be truly accurate with our analogy here. And so oxygen is going to be the same from top to bottom, temperatures same from top to bottom nutrients. The fish are going to be able to move all through the entire water column of the lake because there's now oxygen from the bottom all the way to the top, unlike during the summer months when there was just oxygen up in the top epilimnion water layer.
Speaker 2:Now we move into wintertime. We might get ice across the top on certain lakes in a harsher winter maybe not as much in a milder winter. That ice is going to seal off the wind that normally would blow across the top and keep it mixing. And then the lake will get stratified, but inversely stratified now, because that ice layer on the top is going to be 32 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas down below that it's actually going to be a little bit warmer, and so we'll have the coldest at the top, right where the ice is forming, and it's going to be a little bit warmer down below. Typically, our groundwater temperature in indiana is around 54 degrees on the fahrenheit scale, and so it's going to be a little bit warmer as you go down.
Speaker 2:Now let's look ahead into spring. We all love springtime, when things are waking up and plants are starting to grow again for the year and our lakes kind of wake up in a similar way. So the ice comes off the surface if we had ice that particular winter and now the wind is allowed to interact again with the surface of the water and it's going to start pushing that water towards one shore as the friction of the wind blows across the surface of the water. That water only has one direction it can go, and that is down, and so we call that downwelling. And then on the opposite shore, in order to make up for it, we have upwelling, and so it's like a conveyor belt or a Ferris wheel of water.
Speaker 2:Turnover is happening again in the springtime.
Speaker 2:So just like in the fall we had turnover, now in the spring we have turnover, turnover again, and we're mixing from top to bottom and we move then into the next summer.
Speaker 2:Usually by the time that we move into April, we're starting to get the first stratification starting to set up in the lake, where we get a little bit warmer water on the surface from the sunlight, warmer temperatures longer days and eventually that temperature discrepancy between the epilimnion and the hypolimnion will set up that stratification and it will be stable throughout the entire summer. The bottom hypolimnion layer will stay that same cold temperature that it started at early in the spring or early in the summer or late in the spring, and that top water layer will just continue to get warmer and warmer as the summer goes on and those two layers will not mix anymore throughout the summer months. Next time you jump in a lake and your toes or your fingertips feel that cold water layer, now you know why. Visit lakesgraceedu to download a visual representation of stratification and turnover that happens in the fall and the spring and learn more about our lakes layers there.
Speaker 1:Thanks for listening to this episode of the Lake Doctor podcast. Join us next time. It's bound to be fun.
Speaker 2:Listening to this podcast is just the first step to making your lake cleaner and healthier. Visit lakesgraceedu for more information about our applied research and discover some tangible ways you can make a difference on your lake.
Speaker 1:We'll see you next time. The Doctor is In.