hi all <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> i have a question that i am not getting a clear answer on. i am going to lake berryessa near wine country this weekend (memorial day) to water ski and relax. well i looked up the lake on google to see what fun activities are up there and lo and behold i came upon several websites that said lake berryessa has high levels of mercury in it due to the mining industry that used to dump their run off into the lake! apparently many environmental groups say not to eat the fish, whereas others say don't eat it more than once a week. so naturally i got freaked out about swimming in the water. but thus far in all my research 'scientists' say that swimming in the lake is fine- that the fish have higher mercury levels in them than the water does and that mercury sinks to the bottom of the floor and needs to be converted to methyl mercury by the bacteria down there in order to become toxic to humans. i am not convinced though. i told my boyfriend that i refused to go in the water- but the whole point of the trip is to waterski. he found the various articles online saying that swimming there was fine- but i am having a hard time beliving that. once upon a time 'scientists' thought there was no harm in using mercury in vaccines, amalgams, etc... and they thought there was no problem with it in the fish. obviously that is not the case today. so- my question is to anyone out there who may have knowledge on this subject (not speculation please)- what is your opinion? and do you have any data/facts/ websites you could point me to to back it up? i would appreciate it! thank you <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Anonymous

My best suggestion would be to find another area to go to. If you are going to have a good time, go someplace you feel comfortable, not worried. Hopefully that is possible.

Here's a Google query that may help.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=mercury+lakes

well we already have the cabin and boat booked for and paid for. so not going is not an option <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

i, too, queried the mercury in lake thing on google. and i came up with specifics about not eating the fish- but the same scientist who said that also said in the same article that it was okay to swim in the water- because mercuy is at the bottom of the lake (since it's a metal and it's heavy- it sinks) and that the fish have higher concentrations of it. i could not find info anywhere stating that it would be bad to go in the water.

intuitively i feel otherwise. but i am trying to be objective here and not see potential danger in everything and anything. i think i am driving my boyfriend crazy with all the energy i am giving to this mercury poisoning issue- and i don't want to become a hypochondriac about it, ya know?

guess i will arrive there today and get a 'feeling' about whether or not i want to go in the water. i am definitely bringing bottled drinking water for sure. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

You may want to keep your vitamin c and e up as well. Make the best of it.

lake berryessa has got some good fishing spots. never been there but the Fish n Game magazine I get says its one of the best places to fish in California for Bass. but anyways,

since you mentioned mercury in water I was concerned about this summer at swimming pools. Unfortunetly most of us dont accept it but we know people piss in the pools while swimming and etc... im sure some of us have done it, I know i have when i was a kid.

but is it possible for someone to get mercury poisoning while swimming in a pool where people have pissed on? i know as retarted this sounds, im kinda serious. wouldnt the chlorine kill it?

Wallace 777:

I am not as concerned about pee in the pool as I am about the
chlorine. At least pee is a natural bodily function, not some chemical that someone is posoning us with, like mercury!
I rarely go swimming in chlorine pools, but plan to in the next couple weeks. I bought some detox foot pads to use afterward. They say they remove mercury and chlorine from your body.

well i just wanted to update you all on my weekend. i did go in the water once for about 15 minutes. i tried wakeboarding and we were in the middle of the lake where the water was deep (i was thinking it was the best place versus the shoreline where mercury can collect in the shallow parts where people's feet can touch). not sure if it was the wakeboarding and falling down so many times or if it was mercury- but i did get a peculiar rash shortly after i went in the water. a few others did, too. someone thought it was a sun rash because we were out in the sun for so long. but i disagree. i think it was the water. after that i never went in again.

just thought i'd share... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

The rash is really interesting. This is common with those detoxing mercury as it like to come through the skin at times. Also very interesting that others got it as well.

Thanks for keeping us posted.