Nett Lake Ricing Season will start soon

Posted September 4, 2025

This is a polite request to please make a special effort to clean your canoes and paddles carefully before putting in to Nett Lake, especially if you have been ricing other lakes and rivers prior to ricing on Nett.

The reason for this is to try to prevent spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS). Other lakes and rivers in the area may contain species of plants or animals that are not normally existing in Nett Lake. If those enter Nett Lake hidden in canoes and get established, they can disrupt and interfere with life cycles of existing aquatic species. Some examples of invasive species in the area are Starry Stonewort (an algae), Eurasian Watermilfoil, and Spiny Waterflea (a microscopic crustacean).

Often invasive species are small, even microscopic, and cannot be seen. So, it is very important to observe and follow the “Drain, Clean and Dry” process.

The Drain Clean and Dry process at a minimum involves removing all water from your boat after use, removing any seen plants or foreign materials from your boat and paddles, and completely dry your boat and paddles before putting in at another water body. More ideal is to spray all watercraft, trailers, paddles, and equipment that have been in direct contact with lake or river water with very hot tap water and completely dry all equipment after rinsing.

MN DNR publishes an “Infested Waters List” which lists all lakes containing invasive species. Please note that some rice lakes and rivers 1854 area contain invasives. For example, Island Lake and Vermilion River are both is noted to contain Spiny Waterflea. The list is quite extensive and we invite you to view it at the Excel spreadsheet (XLS) link, found at www.dnr.state.mn.us/infested.html

Please take the time to clean your ricing equipment, and help keep Nett Lake invasives-free! Have a great ricing season!