ELKHART LAKE — A family's vacation at Elkhart Lake took an uncomfortable turn this week when sisters Alessia and Valentina D'Avola developed mysterious, itchy rashes after swimming.
"It kind of feels like a mosquito bite but every time you itch and stuff it feels like you're itching an open pimple or something. It's so uncomfortable," Valentina D'Avola said.
What the family initially thought were bug bites turned out to be a common phenomenon known as swimmer's itch.
"We thought it was mosquito bites at first and then talking to some of the locals realized it was something else," Francesco D'Avola said.
Francesco had never heard of swimmer's itch before this incident.
"This is the first time. We've been coming to this beach all the time and never seen it, so there's a first for everything," he said.
Watch: Family describes first encounter with common 'swimmer's itch' during Elkhart Lake vacation
Swimmer's itch comes from tiny parasites in the water that normally infect birds or mammals. When the weather and water warm up, these parasites often appear in lakes and can make their way onto human skin.
Though swimmer's itch isn't dangerous or contagious, the itchy red welts it causes can be uncomfortable.
Elkhart Lake Police are now warning other swimmers before they enter the lake water in the coming weeks.
If you find yourself with swimmer's itch, the DNR suggests using skin lotion or anti-itch cream to mitigate the symptoms until they fade.
"My sister was covered in these and she has Benadryl and it's a moisturizer and you rub it on there and it stops the itch completely and gets rid of everything," Valentina said.
Despite the itch, the D'Avola family says their annual trip to Elkhart Lake was well worth it.
If you go swimming in a lake that has swimmer's itch, make sure to towel dry and rinse off immediately after leaving the water to kill off the parasites before they burrow into the skin.
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