Lake Sunapee's Lake Host Program

The Lake Host program at Lake Sunapee was originally established in 2000 and Hosts were called Launch Site Monitors. Unlike today, many plant fragments were removed from boats and trailers. Currently, this program is administered by the New Hampshire Lakes Association, a non-profit organization devoted to protecting NH water bodies, and managed by individual lake associations.

The Lake Sunapee Lake Host program covers all five public ramps on the lake and usually consists of nine or more Host's.

Lake Hosts are on duty from May through September and perform courtesy boat inspections while educating boaters and the public about how to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive plants and animals. Any plants or animals found on boats and/or trailers are removed and disposed of by the Lake Host.

Educational materials and lead-free fishing weights (swapped out with ones made from lead - courtesy of LSPA) are also provided as needed. 

Season Statistics

In 2017 Lake Hosts performed 4519 courtesy boat inspections and removed a bunch of zebra mussels attached to the hull of a sailboat last used in Lake Champlain a few years ago. Fortunately, the mussels were desiccated and posed no danger. The following charts (scroll down) display the number of watercraft inspections performed in 2017 by Lake Hosts per ramp and number of boats that were last used in a water body harboring at least one known aquatic invasive species (AIS).  Regionally, NHDES discovered variable milfoil in Chance Brook located in Franklin, NH. Four new infestations of Asian clams were discovered in Great Pond (Kingston, NH), Beaver Lake (Derry, NH), Canobie Lake (Salem, NH), and Little Island Pond (Pelham, NH).  Click here to learn more about AIS.