Low lake levels creating problems for boaters in Minnesota; DNR offers guidance

The unofficial end of summer left some boaters in Minnesota high and dry over Labor Day weekend.

Most of the state is bone dry right now. That's led to lower lake levels and banged-up boats.

Bob Ebert's Labor Day ride was a rare one on Prior Lake.

"This thing does great. I can go into one foot of water with it. So I have no issues," Ebert said while standing near his watercraft.

That's good news for Ebert because the lake is very low.

"It's funny, there's a rock in front of my house that I kind of watch, and the levels. It's probably a foot down from that. So that's kind of how I gauge how the lake's doing," Ebert said.

For 16 years, Lexie Seurer and her dad have run Prior Lake Pontoon Rental. When the lake changes, they notice.

The drought is to blame for the low water levels. Nearly half of Minnesota is in a severe drought, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

As water levels fall, the DNR is warning boaters about how they load up back on land.

"When that happens, it kind of just slides all of the, like, sand, and rock and everything that's connected to that concrete slab out," Seurer told WCCO while at a Prior Lake boat landing.

"Then you'll have to power load, which creates a big hole behind the structured ramp. And then that creates problems for others," Ebert said.

Instead, the DNR says to use idle speed and the trailer winch, and check where the ramp ends before backing in.

Trailers can get stuck, and with hazards closer to the surface, props can get damaged. But there is one upside to the low water levels.

"Pretty much everybody has a beach now," Seurer said.