What in the world are these pictures on the left?
HOA Member Pete Corpeny is currently working to restore the health of the upper lake. We do have fish, but we currently have a below average (for a lake this size) large mouth bass population. The lake has good inflow and outflow, but one of the main problems as far as fish are concerned is the lack of habitat – things like plants or structures in the lake. These are necessary for protection of bait fish and for reproduction. We don’t necessarily want to add plant life as that can quickly get out of control. Previous members have done research and obtained information from the conservation department on how to create suitable man made structures for the fish – Pete has taken that information and with his own research and knowledge of fish ecosystems has begun making various structures that you see on the left. They are durable and safe for the environment. The next most important thing is to introduce bait fish such as bluegill and minnows in order to sustain the existing bass. We can eventually introduce crappie but that is at least 1-2 years away as we need to get the bass population healthy and (re)productive before we introduce an additional predator species. Please note that in a lake this size, crappie will reproduce (given the right habitats) but catfish will not. So, if we ever decide to stock catfish “what we stock is what we get”.
So here’s the steps to revitalizing the lake, and how you can get involved if you’re interested!
• STEP 1: Build about 20 structures and strategically place in lake (4 structures have already been placed)
• STEP 2: An initial stocking of minnows and bluegill has been done to get the food chain going. (Pete has financed this – if we use conservation grants then we have to make the lake public.) Restock as needed.
• STEP 3: Encourage anyone you see fishing to do catch and release only for the next 2-3 years until we get a healthy fish population.
• STEP 4: Pete will be keeping data on the fish he catches to track the progress of revitalizing the lake.
What’s the goal?
1) That eventually families can fish with their kids or grand kids right off a dock and know that they can catch something.
2) Increase the number of dues-paying assoc. members who enjoy using the lake.
