Will this lake give me trouble??

[Miitch]

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday!! I have a summer vacation booked with the family up in Muskoka Ontario. The boat is DEFINITELY coming? however, after looking more into the lake, I’m worried about it’s size.. it’s small.. and I mean VERY SMALL. Im wondering if I’m going to have any troubles boating on it. Im used to the “big waters” of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

this lake is called Jessop Lake. Max depth, 10ft, avg depth, 6ft...1.55 mile perimeter, and 67 acres (0.1 square mile) in size.

the boat will more than Likely be filled, 6-7 people (cousins) and they really wanna tube and wakeboard. Do you think with the weight of 7 people, we’re at risk of sucking up garbage? I feel like wakeboarding is definitely out of the question.. any advice for boating on a lake of this size would be great!

 

[Luc Lafreniere]

Wow, small world. I lived in Melissa for a short period of time! lol

Sucking up garbage won't matter on this lake at all. Regardless of weight in the boat. I boat on an even smaller lake and we're able to do water skiing and such. You'll be fine. If there are other cottages/houses, be mindful of your wake and their shoreline.

 

[Dave burke]

The lake were on in upstate New York is not much deeper. Parts of it are less than 6 ft deep.

we’ve skied and wakeboarded there for years and never had a problem. I would stick to the deeper areas of the lake for skiing and wakeboarding. That said, I’ve skied on parts of our lake that are only 5-6 ft deep, again with no problems.

 

[Miitch]

@Luc Lafreniere Practically neighbors LOL! But thats good to know. As for shoreline, I will definitely keep the wake in mind. Ive been told there are only 17 houses that back onto the lake.. of those 17, only 1 is a permanent resident... rest are all rentals LOL yikes.

Thanks for the advice @Dave burke . cousins are super stoked to try wakeboarding. I would have hated to tell them otherwise.

 

[2kwik4u]

Good Grief that's a lot of chairs around that fire pit!

 

[Dave burke]

@Luc Lafreniere Practically neighbors LOL! But thats good to know. As for shoreline, I will definitely keep the wake in mind. Ive been told there are only 17 houses that back onto the lake.. of those 17, only 1 is a permanent resident... rest are all rentals LOL yikes.

Thanks for the advice @Dave burke . cousins are super stoked to try wakeboarding. I would have hated to tell them otherwise.

happy to help. I’ve always been worried about wiping out in shallow (say 5 ft or less) water but never had an issue. I’ve even skied in 2 ft of water but was super careful.

parts of our lake are no infested with weeds unfortunately so we don’t ski there anymore. If I were you I’d scout around the lake and find an area where the water is deepest and stick to there when skiing or wakeboarding.

last thought, more for skiers I guess - there’s nothing better than skiing on a small lake in the early morning or evening when the surface can be lake glass.

have fun.

 

[Julian]

Good Grief that's a lot of chairs around that fire pit!

Looks like a conference center type setup....even has a professional cigarette disposable container....which is funny right next to a bonfire!

 

[biffdotorg]

I would think you just set your expectations as to what you may be doing on the boat. Many may just be happy to get on the water, tool around a bit and just use it as a swim platform for coolers/music. Nothing wrong with that.

Best advice above, be mindful of others, and enjoy your water sports when possible. If you plug a bit, apologize to the guests and move on. But it really takes a lot to ruin a day boating, even if on a small lake.

What would be worse, is if this small lake had no public access. I don't see it on the map you shared. It would be good to know if that river is navigable to a bigger lake. That would be a fun excursion, even if you wade to wade the river with boat in tow. What fun exploring!

 

[Miitch]

Im more concerned about the tubing aspect. My cousins wanted to TRY wakeboarding. Which means a whole lot of falling, and very little riding. Although, if they proved me wrong, i wouldn't complain either.

Im sure 90% of our time will be spent doing loops, or hanging out in the water with music as @biffdotorg said, which is plenty fine by me. Just wanted to make sure tossing around water in a 6ft deep spot wouldn't cause any jammed impellers. Lake seems to me mostly rock?

As for other lakes, The AirBNB owner spoke with me and mentioned that there is a passage way that connects to a much larger, public access lake to the north, called Waseosa Lake, but i have yet to see it on any map. Neither of these lakes are charted on Navionics either!

 

[Dave burke]

I wouldn’t worry about sucking up stuff in 6ft of water. I don’t really worry with more than 3 ft. Just go slow where it’s really shallow. For example, on our lake, one of the access channels is over a sandbar and it’s less than 2 ft deep. I just go slow and have no problems. I could never do that with my prop boat!

 

[Canuckjetboater]

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday!! I have a summer vacation booked with the family up in Muskoka Ontario. The boat is DEFINITELY coming? however, after looking more into the lake, I’m worried about it’s size.. it’s small.. and I mean VERY SMALL. Im wondering if I’m going to have any troubles boating on it. Im used to the “big waters” of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

this lake is called Jessop Lake. Max depth, 10ft, avg depth, 6ft...1.55 mile perimeter, and 67 acres (0.1 square mile) in size.

the boat will more than Likely be filled, 6-7 people (cousins) and they really wanna tube and wakeboard. Do you think with the weight of 7 people, we’re at risk of sucking up garbage? I feel like wakeboarding is definitely out of the question.. any advice for boating on a lake of this size would be great!View attachment 139711View attachment 139712View attachment 139713View attachment 139714

@Miitch ..... you'll be fine!

 

[dgfreeze]

Is that campfire setup Covid Compliant? ?‍?‍?‍?‍

?

But seriously, my main lake has an average depth of 5ft. Just try to watch your depth finder pretty close, and be smart about it. If you find yourself in dangerously shallow water, don't come off the throttle if you're already on plane... there's a thread all about that on the other forum...lol

 

[Miitch]

@Dave burke Ill take your word! I've boated right up to (but not beached) the beach shore before, usually killing the engines in 2-3ft of water, anchoring it, then walking it out to 4-5ft before starting up. Never really hung around long enough to boat in that depth. Seems like ill be okay though.

@dgfreeze campfire is definitely NOT Covid friendly But hey, the virus doesn't affect those on vacation, right??? real glad this boat came with a depth finder. saved me more times than id like to admit.. same goes for the outside water temperature gauge too ?

 

[212s]

this lake is called Jessop Lake. Max depth, 10ft, avg depth, 6ft...1.55 mile perimeter, and 67 acres (0.1 square mile) in size.

You're right, I went to the Navionics web app to try to view the depths of the lake, but there's no sonar data available even community shares, so it's a do at your own risk scenario. Just remember that the bottom of a jetboat is a vacuum cleaner and it's recommended you don't run the engine in less than 3ft of water. I'd talk to the locals to see if there are any dangers to watch out for before going exploring.

Just south of that area 5 mins away is Vernon Lake which is much bigger and has sonar data. Might be a better choice although you'll have to launch:

Garmin | Marine Maps

Marine Maps

webapp.navionics.com

 

[tdonoughue]

I don't see any cleats on that dock. Looks like it is more for swimming and sitting than for tying up. Might want to check to see what the water depth is there before you even work on putting the boat in. Hate to see you get in and try to pull up to the dock only to figure out there is 1' of water there... You may find that you need to put in/take out each day anyway, and with that you may be better off at the other lake 5 min away.

 

[swatski]

@Miitch That's about the size the cove we wakeboarded and wake surfed for years on the Meramec river in MO albeit you would need more depth for surfing (we had about 20ft) but not for wakeboarding (unless you are a pro).
The only thing I would watch for is not to start the engine too too close to the shore/in very shallow areas w/less than 2-3ft of water as you will run a risk of sucking rocks/gravel that can ruining the pump/impeller - if the boat is stationary. Running over shallow areas on plane is usually no problem as long as you are not making contact with hard bottom, lol.

There are very few things more fun than taking enthusiastic newbies out for water sports!

--

 

[Miitch]

@tdonoughue i spoke with the owner via email shortly after booking and he mentioned that since the pictures have been taken, cleats have been added to the dock and grass has been planted where it looks like mulch. He said the ramp/dock would be suitable for a boat my length. so hopefully he isnt talking out of his rear.

@swatski im glad so many people have good experiences with lakes of this size... was really bummed out thinking we wouldn't be able to wakeboard. I took a bunch of friends out this past summer for their first time boarding and it was an absolute blast! so fun to see the excitement on someone's face when they get up for the first time! cant wait until its family! I try my best to never start the engines in less than 4ft of water. Thankfully, i have a working and accurate depth gauge. I usually swim the boat out to 4-5ft of water if i have killed the engines in shallow water. Has worked good so far!