Use caution swimming at Wentworth, White Lake state parks

There aren’t any cyanobacteria watches or warnings on Granite State waterways heading into the weekend, but two popular Central New Hampshire recreational areas have fecal bacteria advisories in effect.

On Wentworth State Park Beach in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services staff issued a fecal bacteria advisory on Wednesday, based on sampling completed on Tuesday. Sampling was scheduled again for Thursday, with results anticipated as soon as Friday. 

The New Hampshire Beach Inspection Program monitors waters for fecal bacteria present at public beaches between Memorial Day and Labor Day. When they’ve identified elevated levels of fecal bacteria, an advisory is issued. Once an advisory is issued, beaches are resampled until bacteria levels are below the state standard, which is 88 parts per 100mL. Levels under the standard indicate a “clean” sample. 

Water samples are analyzed for the presence of E. coli, with results generally available within 24 hours of collection. If two samples from one beach are above the state standard, NHDES staff issue the advisory. NHDES staff recommend not wading or swimming in impacted waters.

An advisory doesn’t close a beach, but is meant to warn the public. Advisories are removed once sampling indicates fecal bacteria below the standard. 

Wentworth State Park Beach, under good conditions, is sampled twice a month. Sampling has been conducted there since 2003, except for in 2020 and 2021 during the coronavirus pandemic.

At White Lake State Park, located near Tamworth, NHDES staff issued another fecal bacteria advisory on Wednesday, following sampling conducted on Tuesday. It’s the first such advisory there of the season, and resampling was scheduled for Thursday with results expected on Friday. 

The Healthy Swimming Mapper is an interactive map which tracks safe swimming conditions across New Hampshire. Access it for yourself at des.nh.gov/water/healthy-swimming/healthy-swimming-mapper.

And the lake level on Winnipesaukee was 504.05 feet as of July 10, according to a New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services reading taken beneath the Weirs Beach boardwalk and adjacent to the municipal docks. That’s slightly lower than the average, which is 504.32 feet.