Marsh Lake

[Bailey]

Whatever happened to the vaunted restoration they had talked about years ago? I thought they were going to do a draw down on the world famous marsh lake?

[tornadochaser]

It will take years for the federal government (core of engineers) to study and sign off on it.

[lanyard]

Modified Bill Murray quote from Stripes...."You can't let all the water leave, the plants will grow!"

[Bullet21XD]

Marsh Lake isn't restored? F**k!!!

[Big Doe Hunter]

I'll be hitting Marsh for fishing opener. I'll let you know if they are doing any work out there now.

[get-n-birdy]

Marsh lake, or what is often referred to as Minnesota's X, is one of the greatest waterfowl hunting areas in the country. If you've never hunted it, you are really missing out. I would highly recommend bringing the biggest mud motor, jon boat combo you can afford, filled with decoys and new hunting clothes with the tags still on them. You will not be disappointed!

I hope they drain it, then plant corn in its basin.

[StuStiltman]

10 or 15 years ago marsh was a great mid to late season lake, 15 or more trucks at the river landing wasn't unusual, since then 5 trucks was a crowd, in the last decade more lower ends have been smashed then ducks killed on marsh. If you wanna go make sure your up to date with your insurance policy, your probably gonna ruin something, and unless you hit it on exactly the right day, don't expect much. And I've heard the DNR is planning on making a bike trail from Appleton to the spillway between marsh and lqp, they have there plans made but cant act until they know what the core of engineers is gonna do. I've read that the core got there funding approved but I have no idea if/when their gonna start. I am personally not a fan of the idea of diverting the pomme de tere (google marsh lake restoration project) into the area on laq qui parle lake below the twin bridges. I am only 32, so I can't say for sure if this is true, but I've been told by a couple different old timers that the dike between marsh and lqp used to be "10 feet of clear water", now its muddy water and the deepest water I've ever found during "normal water levels" is 6 feet. 6 feet in the fall, obviously it gets deeper during the spring, especially in springs with lots of snow runoff and rain. Diverting the pomme is only gonna clog the lower lqp with silt, just like marsh is now. I'm not an expert on this kind of thing, but I gotta assume that the drain tile around marsh is the reason its full of silt. All that mud is probably top soil.

[Bailey]

10 or 15 years ago marsh was a great mid to late season lake, 15 or more trucks at the river landing wasn't unusual, since then 5 trucks was a crowd, in the last decade more lower ends have been smashed then ducks killed on marsh. If you wanna go make sure your up to date with your insurance policy, your probably gonna ruin something, and unless you hit it on exactly the right day, don't expect much. And I've heard the DNR is planning on making a bike trail from Appleton to the spillway between marsh and lqp, they have there plans made but cant act until they know what the core of engineers is gonna do. I've read that the core got there funding approved but I have no idea if/when their gonna start. I am personally not a fan of the idea of diverting the pomme de tere (google marsh lake restoration project) into the area on laq qui parle lake below the twin bridges. I am only 32, so I can't say for sure if this is true, but I've been told by a couple different old timers that the dike between marsh and lqp used to be "10 feet of clear water", now its muddy water and the deepest water I've ever found during "normal water levels" is 6 feet. 6 feet in the fall, obviously it gets deeper during the spring, especially in springs with lots of snow runoff and rain. Diverting the pomme is only gonna clog the lower lqp with silt, just like marsh is now. I'm not an expert on this kind of thing, but I gotta assume that the drain tile around marsh is the reason its full of silt. All that mud is probably top soil.

Sounds like marsh lake used to be pure magic!

[tornadochaser]

The river won't be diverted to lqp south of twin bridges, it will be diverted back into its original channel between the marsh dam and the railroad tressel. I'm guessing the goal is twofold. More sediment settlement as the pomme waters enter the backwaters of marsh, and better fish migration. Right now the water from the pomme pretty much goes straight over the dam with little chance for sediment to settle out. The walleye fishing in the pomme was 100 times better after the millpond dam came out in Appleton, it would only get better yet if lqp fish can migrate up the system.

[lanyard]

Shot a lot of birds on Marsh. Always hunted the motorized zone. Had a life long memory of a mid-October afternoon hunt out there one time in college. Fabulous.

DNR/Crops of Engineers/whoever, really need to start drawing some lines. Because they faked a reservoir for 100 years shouldn't guarantee a walleye fishery for another 100. As more pressure is put on land acquisition strategies there should be an increase in investment to "heritage" landscapes. It's why everything is dead/lifeless/useless in this state. We mucked up the good stuff trying to make it work for everything (God Bless the MNDNR), and now X number of years later it works for nothing. Offsets were made with new land development, but that time has been over for a decade.

1) stop stocking walleye in non-traditional walleye waters
2) yank stop logs on natural outlets
3) if natural flood plain is diked, bull doze the damned things

There has been a loss of value for all things wild life as the DNR has essentially become production management. Resorts barely exist in part because no one needs to drive more than 5 miles to catch a walleye. There is no mystery left.