Aroostook County Fishing Report: September 23, 2008
Nadeau Lake, Fort Fairfield, was surveyed on Aug. 29 by biologists from the Ashland Headquarters. Routine lake surveys include a series of transects to determine water depths, which results in a depth map commonly used by anglers and boaters, water quality, and of course fish sampling. What was unique for this survey was that Nadeau hasn’t been a lake since 1970. In 2007, thirty-seven years after the lake was drained for mining, the MDIF&W built an outlet dam restoring the historic water level. This effort culminated seven years of work by the MDIF&W to improve trout habitat and create a wild brook trout fishery in Eastern Aroostook County.
In 2001 a 33-acre parcel was purchased adjacent the lake for a future public access; later that year an access road, concrete boat ramp, and parking area was constructed on the new property. Over the next several years several habitat improvement projects, funded in part by Trout Unlimited, Trout and Salmon Foundation, Maine DEP, and the Sport Fish Restoration Fund, were completed with the goal of enhancing brook trout production. These projects focused on deepening the future lake, providing cover for adult and juvenile trout, providing spawning habitat, and increasing cold-water inlets. During dam construction in 2007 the low water provided ideal conditions for a chemical reclamation, a process of applying the organic compound rotenone to remove all fishes. The reclamation removed brown bullhead, white sucker, and several minnow species that would compete with brook trout for food. These projects all add to the very productive, limestone-based water quality of the Lake and will significantly increase trout production.
During the fall of 2007, as the lake was filling behind the new dam, the MDIF&W transferred 310 wild brook trout from a nearby waterway. These trout will be the stock from which to build a new population of wild trout at Nadeau Lake. These trout were mostly one-year-old or less, averaged 3.4 inches in length, and weighed less than half an ounce. During our most recent survey, we were able to sample 20 of these trout and found that growth, as expected, was extremely good. The trout had increased in length to 7-12 inches (average, 9.7) and increased in weight to over 6 ounces (Photo 1). Because of the fast growth all trout that we observed were sexually mature indicating that they will spawn in 2008, good news for our efforts to establish a wild population.
Contrary to what some anglers think, Nadeau Lake is open to fishing at this time. While we try to establish a new trout population, regulations are conservative (two trout daily bag limit), and to maintain high quality habitat in the future the use or possession of live fish as bait is not allowed. Anglers wishing to angle from a boat will find ample parking (Photo 2) and a concrete ramp but a 10 horsepower restriction is in effect; those anglers fishing from shore will find a convenient bank angling area (Photo 3).
