Rather than giggle about what’s on my waders you may want to test yours.

The California Department of Water Resources has been testing 100 California lakes per year for a litany of pesticides, toxins, and Mercury, and of the 152 results released to date, 86% of the lakes will get warning labels.

As we’d expect the high elevation Sierra lakes comprise the bulk of the 21 testing “clean” (less than governmental guidelines), and the balance have at least one chemical that exceeds the government’s recommended exposure.

The all too familiar, “..pregnant women and children should eat one meal per ..” label will be greeting you in the parking lot.

About one-fourth of the lakes surveyed had at least one fish species with a mercury level high enough that state health officials would consider prohibiting it for the most sensitive humans – pregnant and nursing women, women between 18 and 45 years old who might conceive and children.

Naturally anything emptying out of the lakes is similarly afflicted, ditto for everything swimming in that too. Squirting them waders with 409 might be the cleanest thing they’ve seen in awhile …