Wet Winter Leaves Sea Of Debris On Folsom Lake
FOLSOM (CBS13) - You might want to think twice about bringing your watercraft to Folsom Lake as debris is blocking most launches.
State Parks officials say they're aware of the problem and are contracting with a company to remove the debris as quickly as possible.
"It's a total disaster, absolutely a total disaster; I was shocked, disappointed."
That was Steven Gelenich's reaction when he drove up to a launch Tuesday morning, expecting to see a full and clear lake.
"The main launch ramp over there is a total disaster, it's full of thousands of pieces of wood, absolutely no way to launch," Steven said.
But the debris wasn't going to stop Steven.
"I'll tell you right now I'm gonna find a way to launch today," Steven said.
He was determined to cruise the lake on his jet ski. Steven drove to different launches and Oak Beach, but he wasn't having any luck finding a clear spot to launch.
"I feel like I'm going to cry right now, I'm so disappointed," said Steven.
According to State Parks officials, years of drought led to a build-up of debris as far up as the Sierra. Heavy winter rains washed the debris into rivers, reservoirs and ultimately here, into Folsom Lake.
"It probably started coming in back in January, or February," said Superintendent Richard Preston.
It's now May, and with Memorial Day just around the corner, CBS13 wanted to know why wasn't the debris cleaned up right away?
"We had this up and down of the water which pushed debris back and forth, and we couldn't get to it effectively," Preston said.
Crews began removing debris at the end of last week. They have 75 miles of shoreline to clean up.
"If we don't get it cleaned up it's definitely going to impact revenues for the park," added Preston.
Others like Stevie Marchi aren't letting the piles of logs and branches get in the way. Stevie usually brings her kayak to the lake but adjusted her plans, given the sticky situation.
"We brought our floaties so hopefully they won't be popped by the sticks," Stevie said laughingly.
According to State parks, full debris removal from the lake will take up to two months. Park employees are now warning visitors about the challenges of launching their watercraft before they pay their way in.