Who opened the outflow?

I've never seen so much gulf water flowing in to the lakes over an extended period. I'm afraid it may indicate something less than ideal. Like beach sand levels too low.

Subtle sea level rise due to climate change?

Subtle sea level rise due to climate change?

Where's Al Gore and the Dems when you need them #skyisfalling #globalwarming90'stoday

This map is interesting. Pick your area, zoom in, and change the amount of sea-level rise:
Sea Level Rise Map for New Orleans and Gulf Coast

I've never seen so much gulf water flowing in to the lakes over an extended period. I'm afraid it may indicate something less than ideal. Like beach sand levels too low.

Nope. Just different tides and weather pattern. The salinity of dune lakes changes all the time.

Nope. Just different tides and weather pattern. The salinity of dune lakes changes all the time.

I've never seen so much gulf water flowing in to the lakes over an extended period. I'm afraid it may indicate something less than ideal. Like beach sand levels too low.

If we pile all the vendor chairs in one place, then cover them with
about two feet of sand, would that be high enough?

I've never seen so much gulf water flowing in to the lakes over an extended period. I'm afraid it may indicate something less than ideal. Like beach sand levels too low.

The inflows recently are the first I've seen in a long time. If there wasn't enough sand physics would send water out not in.

I remember in the early 80's Philips Inlet looked like white water rapids when it would open up. We had a blast playing in the outflow. Expect mother nature to show you some cool s**t from time to time and enjoy it.

The inflows recently are the first I've seen in a long time. If there wasn't enough sand physics would send water out not in.

Please expand the physical lesson.

John G:

I'm with you on this after what we saw the week of June 11-18.

We were setting up each day on or near the Eastern Lake "isthmus" between the lake and the Gulf. The isthmus was slightly higher than the lake level there, and the lake was very shallow to the north back past the Eastern Lake Rd public access (knee deep to an adult through much of it).

Some days the high tide would slightly, gently and NATURALLY connect the Gulf water to the lake water, usually on "red flag" days, and push the clear/emerald Gulf water into the shallow part of the lake. Most days it remained closed and the isthmus was a true isthmus, a narrow strip of land surrounded by two larger bodies of water.

On Sunday, June 18, we got out there in the afternoon, and the south end of Eastern Lake was waist deep and at times higher once you sunk your feet into the soft, unstable sand on the floor - against the strong current towards the Gulf! We noticed the man made opening to the Gulf where the lake water was shooting out into the Gulf's red flag waves like a water park flume into a wave pool. The isthmus was gone and gradually caving in from the east and west of the outflow.

I asked some people nearby when it opened, and they said some kids did it around 10-11 that morning. They said a Sheriff's beach patrol unit had come by and looked at it and asked who did it - so since it's a state statute, I'd think that the Sheriff's Dept, as a county subagency of state government, would have jurisdiction over that issue. The signs that Lake View Too mentioned are posted at the end of the Eastern Lake Rd public access boardwalk. Who else would people call to report it, some office in Tallahasses so they can send a helicopter over, or send a highway patrol officer out on the beach in his Dodge Charger?

It definitely made an impact on the natural flow of the lake and Gulf. Also made the lake floor unstable and the current dangerous for smaller kids, and made the lake and area impassable for Sheriff, lifeguard and beach services vehicles.

I have seen it 2 times myself this summer. I saw a kid about 16 or 17 years old dig a trench right before Memorial Day and the lake started pouring into the Gulf. Then two weeks ago I saw a little kids digging a trench from Deer Lake out to the Gulf and again Lake water pouring into the ocean. And I'll be damned if yesterday I didn't see almost in exactly the same spot two or three little kids taking another trench in Deer Lake out to the ocean.

At the risk of getting flamed...

If so many people are seeing the trenches being dug, then, why don't you go behind the kids and fill them in?

...of course at the expense of their parents complaining about ruining their kid's vacations and how they can do whatever they want...

Why not completely surround the outfalls with vendors chairs so the kids cannot get to them.

If that doesn't work, we could always use signs and ropes and posts and chains and...oh wait....never mind...

or throw the chairs into the outflow to stop it up!

We could always start a rumor that all the coastal dune lakes have been infected with
flesh eating bacteria and sea lice and that the highest concentrations of the critters live
in wet sand around the outfalls.

Dangital, three times in this thread we have tried to come up with a good use for vendor beach chairs and three times we have failed. Methinks there just ain't no good use for them.

Enough fun, now here is my serious take on kids digging out the outflows: First of all, if it's capable of being dug out by a bunch of kids, that outflow was probably 48 hours or less from busting out by itself. In mother nature years, that is an infinitesimally small amount of time. Second of all, it doesn't harm the lake. It's a Coastal Dune Lake, for crissakes! it's suppose to break out! And three, it's a gorgeous event for a kid to be able to see, and remember for the rest of his life.

Heck...Sowal's own version of white water rafting is an inner tube, a six pack, and a dune lake outflow.

I will cop to digging out Draper Lake several times as a kid and having a blast in the rapids.

My personal feeling is that it's not that harmful to the biology of the lake. It's more of an issue to the tourons that the gulf is brown and doesn't look like a postcard.

All frivolity aside...
Complaining on the board about seeing somebody digging out a lake accomplishes nothing. If you see it and if it posses yiu off, do something about it.

I will get off of my soapbox, now...

I will only add that the strong currents of the newly dug outflow may be dangerous for children. I know it's fun but hopefully adults are very close by.

We've all seen how fast the water can flow.

My best childhood memories at the beach involved working day after day to create trenches for Eastern lake outflow, not quite making it before sundown, only to come back in the morning to start over again. We used those little pails and shovels and made friends with different kids each day who joined in to help. Every now and then we (or so we thought it was us- more like Mother Nature) were successful and what fun that was playing in the "Rapids". That was early 70's. My kids did the same thing in the late '90s. A highlight was the day the owner of the home being built right on top of the dunes came down to tell us how we were destroying nature. His property had a "these dunes aren't made for walking" sign on it sitting next to a bulldozer that was clearing his lot. My kids took a picture of it because even as children, they could see the irony in that!

Was enjoying the beach with family visiting from out of state at Stallworth. Had a nice spot by the lake. Lots of paddlers using the lake to meander to the beach then some nitwit opens up the lake so his kids could have 15 minutes of fun rafting to the gulf. Not only did it drain the long part of Stallworth where it meanders to the beach so the paddlers couldn’t get back to the lake without walking their kayaks and canoes it also deprived a quiet safe place for children to swim. When confronted by one of the paddlers the man denied doing it (even though there were witnesses). I understand the temptation and how some have posted fond memories from years gone by but the lakes are under an enormous amount of stress now and I thought federally protected too. I did notice too that Oyster Lake is low. Is it due to tourists opening the outflow? I know there has always been a natural intake and outtake that’s what makes our lakes so special but how much damage will this do to our beautiful lakes in the long term? It doesn’t seem to be an isolated occurrence any more.

It's almost like someone built giant homes around the lakes and now it's causing problems...

Was enjoying the beach with family visiting from out of state at Stallworth. Had a nice spot by the lake. Lots of paddlers using the lake to meander to the beach then some nitwit opens up the lake so his kids could have 15 minutes of fun rafting to the gulf. Not only did it drain the long part of Stallworth where it meanders to the beach so the paddlers couldn’t get back to the lake without walking their kayaks and canoes it also deprived a quiet safe place for children to swim. When confronted by one of the paddlers the man denied doing it (even though there were witnesses). I understand the temptation and how some have posted fond memories from years gone by but the lakes are under an enormous amount of stress now and I thought federally protected too. I did notice too that Oyster Lake is low. Is it due to tourists opening the outflow? I know there has always been a natural intake and outtake that’s what makes our lakes so special but how much damage will this do to our beautiful lakes in the long term? It doesn’t seem to be an isolated occurrence any more.

Was the Stallworth opening in the last few days? Oyster Lake opened naturally (as best anyone could tell) in late June.