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Fishing forecast 2008: A guide to all Madison waters

Tim Eisele, Special to The Capital Times  —  4/30/2008 10:53 pm

Fishing season begins Saturday, opening a new summer of opportunities on lakes and streams around Madison.

Each spring the Department of Natural Resources selects one of the Madison lakes as the site for a fish survey, and this year it was Lake Kegonsa. Beginning in mid-March, a DNR fisheries crew put fyke nets in Lower Mud Lake, where they caught northern pike that migrate up from Lake Kegonsa to the Mud Lake marshes to spawn.

"We caught some good numbers of very nice northerns," said Kurt Welke, a DNR fisheries biologist for the Madison lakes.

With all of the water from ample snowfall and spring rains, this should have been a good year for northern spawning and reproduction.

"Hopefully the northerns will have a good hatch because water levels should have sustained the eggs, which should now be fry," Welke said last week.

The DNR then set 14 fyke nets along the shoreline of Lake Kegonsa. As fish swim parallel to the shore they encounter the net; when they turn to swim toward deeper water to get around the barrier, they swim into a funnel that traps the fish.

Fisheries technicians and biologists check the nets each day and measure and record the gamefish caught in the nets and then release them alive back into the lake. The final numbers will provide an indication of the fish population in the lake.

"Besides walleyes, we caught a lot of panfish -- and the bluegills in Lake Kegonsa continue to be outstanding," Welke said. "The size structure of walleyes is reasonable, with a lot right around the 15-inch size limit, and some nice 26- to 28-inch females."

Welke believes that the walleye fishery is stable, but modest. It is not the strong walleye population that fishermen will find in Lake Waubesa.

In terms of fishing opportunity, Welke said he saw good numbers of white bass, 13-to-15 inches in size, and yellow bass, 9-to-11 inches long.

"These should provide wonderful opportunities for young fishermen," Welke said. "Once you find them you can stay on them and catch fish."

The water temperatures were too cold to stimulate many largemouth black bass to be cruising the shorelines and show up in the nets, although they did catch one bass that was 21 3/4 inches. They also did see a fair number of smallmouth bass, many 14-to-16 inches.

Because Lake Kegonsa does not have a lot of structure (points, islands, rock bars, etc.), it can be difficult to fish. But that may also be a reason why the panfish often found in open water have grown to such good size.

Scott Harpold, a DNR fisheries technician, seconds Welke's observations, saying that Lake Kegonsa is a good place to fish for bluegills, perch, and white and yellow bass.

"The bluegills are just shy of Lake Mendota size, with a lot measuring 8-to-9 inches," Harpold said. "We also saw some decent 10- to 11-inch crappies."

Opening day fishermen may do well on Lake Kegonsa to set up one pole for panfish and another for walleyes.

2008 MADISON FISHING FORECAST

Kurt Welke made the following observations for anglers heading for other Madison lakes:

Lake Mendota -- The lake's smallmouth bass population stands out among all the area lakes. Fishermen wanting action on opening weekend, may want to target the waters that will be warming earliest, such as University Bay and Warner Bay, and fish the weed edges.

Lake Monona -- This lake holds a good variety of fish. Panfish should be found in Brittingham Bay and Monona Bay. The lake holds good size muskies, northern pike and walleyes.

Lake Wingra -- A rough fish commercial netting harvest took place on the lake in March. The game fish were all thrown back into the lake, but it was evident that good size walleyes, though not a large number, are in the lake. Wingra generally is a lake where kids can catch small panfish, though there are good size crappies in the lake. The lake's reputation is for a good musky density.

Lake Waubesa -- The lake has a good variety of fish, with the east shoreline known for walleyes and the south end can be good for panfish and crappies. In terms of sheer numbers, walleyes are fairly numerous but for size, Lakes Monona and Mendota are normally known for larger walleyes.

Trout streams -- Trout fishermen will find easier access to Black Earth Creek in Dane County were DNR crews have worked to remove brush and attempt to re-establish open meadow conditions normally found along spring creeks.

Stream surveys found good numbers of 6- to 10-inch trout in Deer Creek, Gordon Creek, Black Earth Creek, Elvers Creek, Kittleson Valley Creek, and the Primrose Branch and West Branch of the Sugar River.

Tim Eisele, Special to The Capital Times  —  4/30/2008 10:53 pm