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Motorization debate is making waves at Waldo Lake

Sailors say a ban on gas engines would hinder their hobby, so they hope to modify the proposed rule

By Kate Ramsayer / The Bulletin

Published: November 25. 2009 4:00AM PST

An effort to ban motorized boats from Waldo Lake to create a more wilderness-like experience on the crystalline lake also could prohibit sailboats — vessels generally not known for making a ruckus.

“They would be unfortunate victims of a motor ban, but it's the unintended consequences of something like this,” said Paul Donheffner, the director of the Oregon State Marine Board.

The marine board is proposing to ban the use of all gas-powered motors from Waldo Lake, just north of Willamette Pass, while still allowing electric motors.

It's part of an effort started by the U.S. Forest Service more than a decade ago to address concerns about what should be allowed on the lake, known for being one of the clearest in the world and surrounded on three sides by wilderness.

“The idea was, how can you create a recreation experience that's congruent with the wilderness experience, but not exactly the same,” said Judy McHugh, a spokeswoman with the Willamette National Forest. “The public has persisted in their interest in having us look at a quieter and more peaceful experience on that lake.”

In 2004 and then again in 2007, the Forest Service proposed banning gas-powered internal combustion engines on Waldo Lake, which is located just west of the Deschutes County border and Wickiup Reservoir and north of Odell Lake. Both times, the proposals were appealed, and after the 2007 appeal, a judge told the Forest Service the agency had not proved it had jurisdiction over the lake. At the governor's request, the state of Oregon is now working with the federal agency to manage the lake, and the state is proposing the rule banning gas-powered motors.

But it's not just jet skis and motorboats that use gas-powered motors, said Chris Gardner, a Bend attorney who has sailed on Waldo Lake since 1989.

Sailboats need a motor to get in and out of docking slots, navigate rocks in the shallow bays and to point the boat into the wind to get the sails up and going, he said. They also need a motor for when the wind dies, or when a storm comes up unexpectedly.

And electric motors won't do, Gardner said.

“There are trolling (electric) motors,” he said. “But they're designed for operating in low-wind conditions, for sneaking around the reeds while you're fishing.”

They're not, however, designed to power sailboats on the windy days when sailors like to be out, he said.

Gardner and others have proposed modifications to the rule — to allow 4-stroke engines, which are quieter than the 2-stroke engines used by motorboats, and maybe even lower the existing 10-mph speed limit on the lake to 5 mph. A lower speed limit would force the motors to run at half-throttle, he said, and cut the noise drastically.

Keith Kendrick, a sailboater from Albany, said that 4-stroke engines are quieter than 2-stroke versions and pollute less as well.

“We're for access while protecting the lake,” he said. “You can protect it with small 4-stroke motors.”

Waldo is a unique lake for sailors, he said, because of its size — almost 10 square miles — and because of the speed limit.

“There is no lake like Waldo in Oregon,” Kendrick said.

While pollution concerns were one of the reasons the Forest Service initially looked at restricting gas-powered motors, the amount of motorized boating on the lake should not damage the water quality, said Al Johnson, hydrologist with the Willamette National Forest. Many of the byproducts from burning gas will vaporize, he said, and because the lake is so big and deep, any particles will be diluted as well.

People have measured the clarity of the water by lowering a disk below the surface and seeing how deep it can get while remaining visible. The results are comparable with Crater Lake, he said.

“Waldo and Crater are probably right up there with the clearest in the world,” Johnson said.

It's not pollution issues that are driving the ban, said McHugh, the Willamette National Forest spokeswoman. Instead, it's an attempt to create a recreation experience without noisy engines.

Tim Lillebo, of Oregon Wild, said there are many other lakes in Oregon that allow motors. But it's rare to have large, accessible lakes that are free of the noise of gas-powered engines, he said.

“And with wilderness on three sides, it makes sense to protect the area,” he said.

The Forest Service is working to create a “semi-primitive” experience at Waldo Lake, said Doug Heiken, conservation and restoration coordinator with Oregon Wild. “If you're hiking along a trail, or paddling a canoe, the motorboats interfere with that,” he said.

And pollution concerns shouldn't be ignored, Heiken said.

“Let's not take these risks,” he said. “It's wilderness character in a world-class, unbelievably beautiful, deep blue lake — there really is something special there that you can't find anywhere else.”

Kate Ramsayer can be reached at 541-617-7811 or at kramsayer@bendbulletin.com.

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