Considerable attention has been focused on understanding modes and rates of post-depositional sediment reworking in the Great Lakes with the result that virtually all theoretical models describing particle dynamics or reconstructing the history of pollutant input in the lakes include surficial sediment reworking terms. A rare earth element (REE) tracer pellet was deployed at the floor of the Ile Parisienne basin of eastern Lake Superior to measure representative sediment reworking and transport processes in the benthic boundary layer of the profundal Great Lakes. Samarium oxide, a high neutron-capture cross-section REE, was added at a concentration 30,000 greater than found naturally in the lake sediments. After 23 days the study site was reoccupied and eleven submersible-taken punch cores were collected from within and around the labeled area. Verticle core sections were then examined by instrumental neutron activation analysis. These results demonstrate the utility of in situ tracer studies at profundal depths and suggest that longer-term studies will permit accurate measurement of post-depositional redistribution processes at the sediment-water interface of freshwater and marine environments.