ON A SUNNY SUMMER SUNDAY in July, volunteers collected Bradley Lake water samples for testing by the NH Department of Environmental Resources (NHDES). With Ragged Mountain in the background, Susan Chase (center) stores sample in cooler under the watchful eye of Sara Steiner (left), who coordinates the Volunteer Lake Assessment Program (VLAP) at NHDES. Observing the proceedings (and a nearby loon pair on the water) was Andover Selectman Vicky Mishcon at right. Bradley Lake quality has been generally high over nine years of summer sampling, as the 2017 data summary indicates: “Water quality is indicative of oligotrophic, or high quality water, conditions. The lake serves as a public water supply and water quality data indicate the lake to be supportive of that use….”
