Tips and tales about keeping water clean
Explanations for recent phenomena observed in Forest Lake In recent weeks, several people have contacted the Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District (CLFLWD) to report fish kills and algal growth observed in Forest Lake. Read on to learn what’s behind these recent phenomena. Fish Kill: After conversation with the Minnesota DNR, watershed district staff have concluded…
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CMSCWD includes 17 miles of the St. Croix Riverway stretching from Stillwater Township to Scandia, as well as 31 lakes, three designated trout streams, and hundreds of acres of wetlands. The four largest lakes in the district – Big Marine, Big Carnelian, Little Carnelian, and Square Lake – are in the Top 10 list of cleanest metro area lakes. There are also thousands of acres of high quality, undeveloped habitat in the region.
Where should the district focus limited time and money in the coming decade?
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We started our trip at the County Rd K landing (Namekagon River), near Trego, Wisconsin, and ended four days later at the Lower Tamarack landing (St. Croix River), 47-miles downriver. To avoid using a shuttle or bringing two cars, I brought my mountain bike along and rode back to our put-in at the end of each day to bring our truck and camping gear down to the next location.
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Tanners Lake is part of the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District (RWMWD), and the district has worked hard to improve and protect water quality in the lake over the past 20 years. In fact, Tanners was one of the first lakes in Minnesota to be removed from the state’s impaired waters list (in 2004) after phosphorus levels went down and algae stopped being a problem.
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This summer, Friends of Sunfish Lake Park secured a $139,000 grant from the Minnesota Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council Conservation Partners Legacy Grant Program to remove buckthorn and restore native plants in 40 acres of the park. The City of Lake Elmo will contribute $10,000 to the project and volunteers will provide at least 300 hours of in-kind support as well.
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There is an art to meandering in the woods. For Trout Brook and other naturalized streams, the “wiggles” allow for different types of habitat that fish need.
Sometimes people need a pause to wander in the woods as well.
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The Mississippi is like a woman with a basket on her back that grows heavier by the hour. Sometimes I think she gathers our tears as well, as she sweeps through burning cities and past people crying out for justice.
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As I rounded the corner, I hit the gas and pedaled harder knowing the other bike was probably close behind. Perhaps he’d seen pigtails sticking out from beneath my helmet and thought it would be easy to catch a girl. Little did he know that I am quick like a rabbit.
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Like any good wilderness adventure, our day featured a stimulating mix of peaceful solitude, surprising discoveries, playful rest time, and harrowing travel.
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Last weekend, Minnesota’s 2020 fishing season opened with a bang. There was snow up north, only a few fish caught in the St. Croix River, and no cameo appearances from Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. None-the-less, record numbers of Minnesotans purchased fishing licenses last week and set sail in search of walleye, pike, and lake trout…
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