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Posted

Anyone know what makes a lake cloudy one year and perfectly clear the next?

Most of time I can make out small (almost microscopic) white organisms in the water. If I look really close they twitch. Some years they seem to get larger and fewer as the season progresses and the water gets clearer.

I have had a few theories but not sure if any are tied to it or not:

  • How soon after turn over the freeze up actually occurs
  • Amount of wind preceding freeze up
  • Drought cycles
  • Lack of forage base eating the little bugs I see
Posted

I have seen the same thing from one year to another on certain lakes and I think it depends on the wind before freeze up and lately how long it takes to freeze up.

I have noticed that on a certain lake I frequent that it usually starts out clear then clouds up as the season goes and this is due to a warming trend after freeze up. it lets the run off from the roads and creeks enter this body of water and then it seems to cloud up.

As for the bugs and stuff the less time the snow is on the ice the more active those little bugs will be, due to more sun reacihing the weeds in the water, which in turn causes the weeds produce O2. I guess this to could casue some problems with water clarity or it could also help lear up some waters.

Great question

Posted

I think the wind prior to capping over is the biggest factor. I live on a lake, and I do the secci monitoring for the MPCA on it. This fall I had readings of 20-22 feet after turnover.

Last year I could see the bottom easily in 14-16 feet. This year, I can barely see down six feet.

We had very strong winds, and then it froze up partially, and then the wind pounded it again and broke most of it up. It calmed down and it capped over and it has been cloudy ever since. The lake never got a chance to breathe (for lack of a better term) prior to freezing up.

Posted

I have noticed water quality has been poor this year compared to last year on a few metro lakes

Posted

Old timers used to talk about the lakes turning over. I think when it gradually gets cold, the warmer water at the bottom rises slower and the colder water right under the ice, goes lower. I think that when it gets colder faster that sometimes it turns over faster and stirs up the bottom. This might not make sense , but it's what I blame the poor visibility on. Remember I'm old.

Posted

I've noticed murkey water when the winds are high even after the lakes freeze over. I think before the ice gets too thick wind can push down on the ice creating a subtle suction effect drawing up some sediments from the bottom.

Posted

Today I watched the water turn from almost clear to murky in an hours time and I think some part of it was due to the fact that the sun dipped behind the clouds today.

I still had plenty of fish in the hole but most of them were the wrong speices.

Posted

Today I watched the water turn from almost clear to murky in an hours time

Sounds like bottom feeders, I've seen carp make a real mess of things

Posted

When in college I used to spear on Lake Bemidji, while spearing up on a shallow sand flat I noticed at the beginning of a major front I could actually see the sand/silt stir up the bottom and cloud the water a bit. The ice wasnt thick and moved up and down from the wind and caused it to actually push down the ice causing the bottom content to lift off the bottom.

Meat Run

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • monstermoose78
      Ok the ice was 15-16 inches and less than 2 inches of snow. It’s was -15 this morning and the weekend looks to be cold again. The fish were there but not biting with change in weather. 
    • Dash 1
      I guess the vikings are a lot like fishing.  Very entertaining but frustrating at times. I've probably been cheering the vikings for 50 plus years  that i can remember and once again it's all about (there's always next year).  
    • Dash 1
      I remember Jeno's boxed pizza years ago.  Mom made it every Saturday night while dad and I watched All Star Wrestling.  
    • smurfy
      Chef boyardee box pizza. Good stuff 
    • smurfy
    • leech~~
      Smurf, still trying to get his lure jigging down when using the camera!  🤭   https://www.facebook.com/reel/517510734635573
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore... Ice fishing is going great on the south shore of Lake of the Woods, with resorts and outfitters reporting thickening ice conditions with two feet of ice in some areas.  Many ice roads are now open to 1 ton vehicles pulling a wheelhouse.  Every road has different weight limits, check with each resort for details before traveling up and out on the ice.      Some good fishing this past week.  As a rule, fishing activity is happening in 28 - 32 feet of water.  Resorts do just about everything they can to get customers on fish and this past week, some resorts made some long runs, resetting fish houses in new areas miles off shore.  Most are reporting good fishing as a rule.     It is common to sort through some small walleyes and saugers to get your keepers on LOW.  Naturally, some big fish are showing up, especially in deeper water.  In addition, this has been a very good year for jumbo perch with good numbers being caught.  Other fish in the mix are eelpout (burbot), pike, tullibees and an occasional sturgeon.      Anglers are using the one-two punch of jigging in one hole and deadsticking the second hole. In the jigging hole, a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head or tail in gold / pink, gold / glow red, glow white / pink, or Wonder Bread have worked well.     Especially in the deeper water, some anglers are finding success on rippin raps or using jigging spoons with a rattle as well.     On the deadstick, a small jig with a live minnow hooked behind the dorsal fin set 6 inches - a foot off of the bottom is working well.  One day the jigging line catches most of the fish, the other day a deadstick is hot.     Electronics are very helpful to see suspended fish, know when fish are coming through and adjust your presentation to the mood of each fish.  Most resorts, outfitters and bait shops in the area rent electronics by the day.   On the Rainy River... The Rainy River is still producing some nice walleyes and saugers, primarily in the mornings and evenings.  A jig and minnow working well.   Catch-and-release sturgeon fishing continues to be good for those targeting them.  An oversized hole, or three holes drilled together, with nightcrawlers or frozen emerald shiners on a sturgeon rig fished on the bottom are what anglers are using.     Ice conditions on the river can vary significantly due to the current. To stay safe and maximize success, always work with a local resort or outfitter familiar with river conditions.    Up at the NW Angle... Ice fishing continues to be very good up at the Northwest Angle. Resorts have fish houses set up on various pieces of structure as well as adjacent to structure in deep mud.  A consistent mix of walleyes, saugers, jumbo perch, pike and tullibees in the mix.     Shallow structure is best right away in the morning and as the sun starts going down in the late afternoon.  Mud is more of a slower bite but all day.   The ice road from Jerry's on the mainland (Angle Inlet, MN) to island resorts (as of this past week) was open to 1 ton vehicles.  Guests drive right to their island resort after picking up a road pass at Jerry's or Point North Services.  Venmo is also available at all resorts.  Work through your resort for specifics.   Ice fishing is in full swing across Lake of the Woods and there are openings for lodging, fish house rentals, sleeper fish house rentals and meal plans across the area.  Ice fishing is extended on LOW with fish houses allowed on the ice through March 31st, walleye / sauger season open through April 14th and a pike season that never closes.  
    • Brianf.
      From your fingertips to God's ears...  Finally got some snow!   Several inches of new snow fell before and during the weekend.  Sunday eve when we left, the high winds had already begun to create some drifting on the lake.  It was fun riding for sure.  Lots of folks on the lake this past weekend too.  We fueled up the sleds at Shamrock and saw as many people fishing in that area as I've ever seen in the Winter on Lake Vermilion.     Our weekend results were decent.  Jeff and I and a buddy caught probably 50 walleyes between the three of us, mostly fishing a jig/plastics with our three biggest being 24", 25", and 25.5".  We also got one large pike of unknown length.  During the midday on Sunday, we targeted whitefish and Jeff managed one big one.  We released all of our fish, except for three small walleyes that our buddy wanted to bring home for a meal.  Definitely a fun weekend on Lake V!   
    • leech~~
      The Vikings are the Vikings so it's nothing new.  It is kind of sad that Darnold's off season stock is now going to drop like a rock after these last two games. It kind of shows he's not a big game guy.  🤔
    • smurfy
      I'm blaming leech... his food selection has been lacking game days recently  🤣
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