Michigan's Underwater Paradise

 

The following article appeared in the Ludington Daily News on 7/19/2022. 

Ludington a snorkeling hotspot? Someday, group hopes

• By JUSTIN COOPER Daily News Staff Writer

Could these waters one day be dotted with snorkelers? A small but international group aims to bring freshwater snorkeling into the mainstream, with a particular focus on the Ludington area. One member, Martin Ruiz, described snorkeling the Big Sable River, as "the most wonderful experience that you can have."

The Ludington area has no shortage of outdoor activities to engage in. But someday, snorkeling could make its way onto that list.

A small but global group is imagining the city as an international destination for freshwater snorkeling, which they see as an untapped opportunity in outdoor recreation.

It’s all in the very early stages, and some of those involved aren’t even sure if it will involve a formal organization, a physical location or simply a website.

But at the heart of it is a belief that peeking under the fresh waters of the world is an overlooked but rich way of connecting with nature.

“Anyone who’s ever been on vacation to Florida or Hawaii … they all (snorkel) on vacation, and they all have a good time,” said freshwater photographer Eric Engbretson.

“I think people just don’t realize that we have these opportunities right here in our local lakes. … We’d just like to see it become more mainstream.”

Engbretson is part of the snorkeling enthusiast group trying to push its hobby — and Ludington’s opportunities for it — into the public eye.

Their plan could tack one more outdoor sport to the long list of them the Ludington area is known for.

But for them, it’s also a way of honoring a fellow freshwater explorer, whose favorite spot was right here in Ludington State Park.

‘The best place in the entire world’

The glue binding the group together is their admiration for Nancy Washburne, a Michigan woman whose underwater films attracted an online community of like-minded snorkelers before her death in January this year.

“She was so involved” in showing people “the incredible treasure that they have just below the surface of all these lakes and rivers all over the world,” said her husband, Martin Ruiz.

In her 60s, Washburne spent three years snorkeling nearly 500 of Michigan’s inland lakes, traveling solo in what Ruiz called “a clunker.”

Along the way, the former travel agent discovered Ludington was “the No. 1 location for snorkeling in Michigan, without any doubts — and No. 1 by far,” according to Ruiz.

“When she found the (Big) Sable River for the first time … she called me that night, and she said, you are not going to believe this. I just found the best place in the entire world,” Ruiz said.

He said the two of them returned to snorkel the river, which drains Hamlin Lake into Lake Michigan, for 15 consecutive summers.

With shallow water, no boat traffic and “hundreds” of colorful fish schooling by the riverbanks, he said it’s “the most wonderful experience that you can have.”

“It is nature at its best, and it’s always full of surprises,” he said, adding that “it’s very easy” and “free, basically.”

It’s in honor of Washburne and her favorite snorkeling spot that her husband and followers have zeroed in on Ludington as the focal point of their efforts to promote the sport.

Once the group has its ideas firmed up, Ruiz hopes to get state agencies involved in advancing Michigan, and Ludington in particular, as the “headquarters for the global alliance of freshwater discovery.”

The whole point is “to create an ecotourism industry,” he said, adding that just as Michigan draws snowmobilers in the wintertime, the Great Lakes could be a regional magnet for summertime snorkeling.

“That represents millions of dollars when you start getting this at the level it should be,” he said.

‘Oh, it’s so cool’

Mary Larson, a “big” Washburne fan from Indiana, said she started out as a hiker who “didn’t even think to look underwater.”

But she found inspiration in Washburne’s videos, and today, she is driven into freshwater by “a curiousness. I want to see what I can find, and once you actually do see the fish — oh, it’s so cool.”

For her, snorkeling has “taken over” hiking, and she regularly shares on Facebook what she sees under the waves.

She thinks it could do the same for anyone who “has that love for nature.”

“If you love hiking and seeing what kind of birds you can see — what kind of deer, animals, turkeys, bugs — if you like that, then you’re probably going to love the fish, too,” Larson said.

As for why freshwater snorkeling isn’t already big, “people don’t really understand what freshwater is all about,” said Mark Barrow, a Washburne fan in the United Kingdom who has been filming underwater for more than 30 years.

“They’re unsure of the species that live in (freshwater), and they tend to look at it as unimportant, even though they do rely on it,” he said.

It’s also partially because “the oceans always had Jacques Cousteau as an ambassador, and freshwater just doesn’t seem to have anyone,” he said — except, for some, Washburne.

Engbretson, who lives in Wisconsin, said freshwater bodies might fly under the radar because they’re “so close, and we drive by them everyday, (so) we just don’t think of them as being a destination” for snorkeling.

“And, to be fair, a lot of them are Coca Cola-colored, or chocolate milk,” he said.

But he noted Michigan is “a special place for clear lakes." And those who look into their depths may find more than just fish and seaweed.

In her “Snorkeling Guide to Michigan Inland Lakes,” Washburne described snorkeling as “a great spiritual experience.”

“Within seconds of parking the car and entering the lake, I can literally feel the tension oozing out through my fingertips,” she wrote.

“One can come out of the water in a state of spiritual and mental healing.”

What we Can Learn From Fish When We Spend Time With Them:

Do fish have individual personalities? I'm often asked this question and I have some definite thoughts about it. For me, the answer is unequivocally yes. I’ve been photographing fish underwater in their natural habitat for over 25 years. In that time, there are long stretches when I’ve worked with the same individual fish for years at a time. I think most would agree that just like the personality distinctions one could make between say poodles and collies, distinctions between different types of fish certainly exist. Northern pike have different personality traits than largemouth bass and bluegills. Each species possess their own “group personality identity”.  But I would also suggest that it goes further than that. Individual fish behave differently from their cohorts and exhibit what can only be regarded as unique personalities with as much depth and richness as those of our own pets. 

Epiphanies about fish like this one can easily escape the casual observer and are only possible when one spends an extended amount of time observing and interacting with them. But because fish live in a world separate from ours, it’s difficult to do this in the same way birdwatchers can for example.  To observe fish in their natural habitat, we have to go under the surface with masks & snorkels or diving equipment. 

On warm summer days, our lakes are filled with swimmers and boaters, but they’re largely unaware of the diversity of life that swims just below them. We’re deaf to a grand symphony in concert under the surface. In recent years kayaking has become a very popular way to enjoy our waters. I’d love to see snorkeling gain that same kind of popularity in our inland lakes and become something you do every weekend, and not just when you’re in Hawaii on vacation. 

I’d encourage anyone interested in animals, and especially those interested in fish specifically to explore snorkeling as a way to observe and enjoy fish. They’re so fascinating to watch and there’s much we can learn about them.

Why Underwater Photography in Freshwater?

I'm often asked why I'm interested in freshwater fish like bass and walleye.  Well, the freshwater world has never had an ambassador in the same way the oceans had Jacques Cousteau.  Perhaps, all of us who spend time in lakes can collectively be some sort of equivalent to that.

I think there’s always room for more good photographers, and I think interest in freshwater fish will continue.  I’d encourage beginners to learn about their subjects.  Become an expert on the life and behavior of these fish.  Become a steward of their habitat.  Whether it's a musky, a largemouth bass or a bluegill, think of yourself as a PR person for that particular fish.  If you do this, you’ll show them in the best light, you’ll be mindful of disturbing them, and your work will automatically show these creatures at their most magnificent.  Don’t sell pictures or videos.  Instead, fall in love with your subjects and sell that love!  And instead of exploiting them for personal profit, you’ll become partners with them in calling attention to their inherent beauty and value in the ecosystem, and the special problems each one of them face in an increasingly crowded world.

Ode to a Forbidden Lake

(Today's post comes courtesy of contributing photographer Christopher Morey. All photos (c)Chris Morey)

In 2013 a young man, tragically, drowned in North Twin Lake (near Traverse City, MI.).  Naturally, there were very strong reactions.  I heard and read a lot of sensible talk about respecting the water, and making swim lessons available for children.  Really important things in an area with many lakes, and many drownings each year.  But, after this drowning in that particular lake, there was an immediate and concerted effort on the part of the Parks and Recreation Commission  to assign blame. A lot of the discourse appeared to go beyond the desire to improve things.  There were allegations of inadequate warnings and facilities. (Which consist of a lovely park,  a defined swim area,  and very clear warning signs – which have been there for years) 
The warning signs have been there for a long time because the lake, being sheltered and surrounded by woods, and with a nice park, is a springtime gathering place for high-school seniors, and there had been other accidents. There were assertions, some of which bordered on superstition, that the lake was intrinsically dangerous. That it was brutally cold; had currents and undertows; abrupt drop-offs and ‘false bottoms’. County commissioners interviewed local divers. I was invited to come to the lake and help determine what the problem was.

While I understood the urgency, I was not comfortable with the publicity and tone of the proceedings so soon after such a sad thing had happened.  It felt disrespectful.  Even so, the initial steps taken by the Parks and Rec Department were prudent and practical.  They beefed up the warning signs.   They put in throw rings.   They put in an emergency phone.   Good ideas. Especially with kids hanging out there a lot.  After all of the publicity and discussion I was curious.  So, the following summer, my daughter, a dive buddy, and I thoroughly investigated North Twin Lake.  We went literally everywhere – repeatedly – throughout spring, summer and fall.   Top to bottom, side to side.
Here is what we found:  In the heat of summer – when the bay, and virtually every inland lake in the area, is full of boats – North Twin is blissfully quiet, and clear, and – no matter the wind; calm.  It gets warm enough to swim in a full month before West Bay.  There are no waves.  There are no rip-tides, undertows, or significant currents of any kind.

My daughter, enjoying the balmy depths about 20 feet down in North Twin.

 
Throughout late spring and summer of 2014 the surface temperature – out from the shallows, which are much warmer – ranged from 66-74f, down to a very consistent depth of around 23 feet.  Not paralyzingly cold.   Not unpredictable.  The shoreline of North Twin varies.   The defined wading area has a sand/silt bottom typical of inland lakes. It gradually and predictably drops off as you get further from shore. The angle at which it drops off is governed by something called ‘the angle of repose’. Generally speaking, water-permeated sand has an angle of repose between 10-30 degrees. The fine sand in North Twin is mixed with silt from decaying vegetable matter and tends to the low end of that range.

The ‘drop off’ in the swim area at North Twin Lake. Image taken at about 8 feet of depth – this is the steepest part of the angle – it is less to the right, in the critical 5-foot range.  The soft, silt and sand, bottom does not support steep angles.

In other words – it drops off at about the same rate as every other inland lake around here. There is not a lot of shallow water, but you do not just suddenly step off some kind of ledge.  In every way North Twin is pretty much like other small lakes in our area, except for some factors that make it much safer than most for moderately skilled swimmers.  No boats, No waves, No currents, and a very consistent and relatively deep thermocline (ie – it stays warm above 23 feet). West Bay, for example, can have rip-tides, undertows and, in the summer, is very busy with fast moving boats. The thermoclines in West Bay are all over the map depending on the day.  One day my daughter and I went freediving in West Bay and the water temperature was 73 degrees.   The next morning, at the very same location, it was 48. That’s approaching 30 degrees overnight just because the wind changed.  Not possible in North Twin.  Because the lake is spring fed it has a couple of other big plusses. Other than the sandy shoreline, it does not get super-warm; hovering in the upper-sixties to low-seventies throughout late spring, summer, and much of fall. This keeps the bacteria count down compared with other small lakes. It can also be stunningly clear, which makes for beautiful diving – particularly along the West Shore (far from the swimming area) where there are some fallen trees.
I fell in love with that lake. Here was a quiet, beautiful, meditative, freediving spot not five minutes from my house. The facilities there are great.  The underwater habitat, while limited in terms of species, is lovely and vibrant. On the far side I found fallen trees playing host to a curious audience of sunfish and largemouth bass. The surface was so still, the water so clear, that I could look up through fallen branches and see fish seemingly suspended in clear, blue sky.

‘Flying fish’ against a glassy surface

I thought it was an undiscovered wonder and made plans to do an article on the lake with Traverse Magazine.  I started contacting other freediving instructors about doing beginners residential clinics using the facilities there. It’s a tailor made safe environment for basic freediving classes.  I’d planned to bring my adult son, who has autism, with me on freediving expeditions.  At long last I’d found a place where he could safely kayak nearby and I wouldn’t have to worry about boats, waves, winds or currents.  The peace and quiet would be relaxing for him and, If he jumped in and paddled around, I knew he’d be fine. Despite his severe learning disability he has been able to tread water and breast-stroke for long periods of time since he was 7 – thanks to his teachers and to the wonderful staff and facilities at our community pool.  Now none of that can happen.  Putting in additional safety equipment wasn’t enough for the Parks and Rec Commission.  They went further.  A warning and rings and a phone were good ideas.  Making swimming outside the line a civil infraction?  A $100 fine? Not so much.  I asked if there were exceptions for scuba and free diving.  No exceptions.  The lake is effectively locked out of the very activities to which it is most suited – recreational/work-out surface swimming and free diving/snorkeling.  I’m feeling pretty ripped-off. 

North Twin lake does contain water.  Water can, under certain circumstances, be dangerous.
Thats about it.

Incontrovertible Evidence of Actual Water in North Twin

Twenty Years of Underwater Observations: What's Changed?



2015 will mark my agency’s 23^rd year of photographing freshwater fish, underwater in the wild.  As I thought about that, I began to reflect on two trends I’ve noticed over the past two decades, especially in lakes in Wisconsin and Northern Michigan where I live.  A few things stand out regarding fish sizes and abundance and general lake quality. 

Water Clarity:

As an underwater photographer, water clarity is critically important for getting good images.  Because of that, we make it our business to know where the clearest waters are.  One disturbing trend over the past 20 years is that we seem to be losing many of our historically clear lakes in Wisconsin.  More than a dozen lakes that were once very clear are no longer suitable for underwater photography because they simply are no longer clear enough.  Whether it’s because of run off, phosphorus overload or natural eutrophication is unknown.  But since these dramatic changes have occurred over such a short period of time, it suggests that the causes are not natural and are probably indications of damage we as lake users are facilitating.  On the other hand, there are also lakes that were once turbid or had poor water clarity that are now excellent.  The bad news is that virtually every lake that has significantly improved water clarity, it’s because of the presence of zebra mussels.  That may be a nice byproduct for snorkelers and divers, but the expansion of invasive species may also cause long-term negative consequences that aren’t as desirable as clearer water.

Changes in Fish Size and Abundance:

In Wisconsin’s inland lakes I’ve noticed some real changes in the last twenty years in fish abundance and sizes. In the interest of brevity, rather than detail and discuss each one at length here, I’ve decided to instead post a chart of what my personal observations have been over the past two decades. 

Table 1 Change in abundance and average size of Wisconsin fish species I've observed: 1993-2014

SPECIES	ABUNDANCE	AVERAGE SIZE
Muskie	Unchanged	Unchanged
Northern Pike	Decreased	Decreased
Walleye	Increased	Increased
Largemouth Bass	Increased	Decreased
Smallmouth Bass	Increased	Increased
Yellow Perch	Decreased	Decreased
Bluegill	Unchanged	Decreased
Black Crappie	Unchanged	Decreased
Rock Bass	Decreased	Decreased

It’s interesting to note that many of my personal and subjective observations regarding fish abundance and size structure mirrors what Wisconsin DNR fish biologists have also found over this same time period.  Walleyes and Smallmouth Bass are doing better these days but panfish in general are probably being overexploited in many areas, especially what fish managers consider to be quality fish.  (The Wisconsin DNR is in the early stages now of implementing new panfish regulations that hopefully will reverse a 70 year long trend of ever- increasingly smaller fish.)

 

The Future:

 

So what does these mean for us?  For someone like me who’s trying to photograph large gamefish underwater or fisherman who like to catch them, it means that in many cases, there are fewer trophy fish swimming in Wisconsin waters than there used to be.  Today, for me, it’s easier than ever to encounter and photograph nice-sized smallmouth and walleyes, but it’s getting harder and harder to find larger pike and quality sized panfish.  The future isn’t necessarily a bleak one however.  It’s my hope that we can turn this around.  Today, with camera phones being ubiquitous and replica mounts being both stunning and affordable, there’s little reason not to release not just the trophies but ALL the larger fish we catch.  If these same trends continue for the next twenty years, as fishermen, we’ll have no one to blame but ourselves.

What are Wisconsin's Clearest Lakes? 2014

I was talking to Jennifer Filbert at the Wisconsin DNR the other day. Jennifer manages the data for the state-wide citizen's lake monitoring group.  They're a network of individuals, usually lake-front property owners who monitor and regularly take a variety of water samples from lakes all across Wisconsin.  The data they compile helps to give us a look at how our lakes are doing. One of the many tasks lake monitors perform is to take regular sechi disc readings.  This is a universal way of assessing and comparing water clarity.  I was interested to know which Wisconsin inland lakes were the clearest.  Jennifer sent me a spreadsheet of some really comprehensive data and I thought it would be interesting to pass this along.  Here are the lakes that recorded the highest average water clarity in 2014. In short-here are Wisconsin's clearest inland lakes and their average water clarity in 2014:

1)  Pine Lake, Waukesha Co. 31 feet
2)  Black Oak Lake, Vilas Co. 30 feet
3)  Hart Lake, Bayfield Co. 30 feet
4)  Whitefish Lake, Douglas Co. 30 feet
5)  Bass Lake, Washburn Co. 30 feet
6)  Des Moines Lake, Burnett Co. 27 feet
7)  Lake Owen, Bayfield Co. 25 feet
8)  Maiden Lake, Oconto Co. 25 feet
9)  Lake Millicent, Bayfield Co. 25 feet
10) Sugar Camp Lake, Oneida Co. 24 feet

To see the lake list from 2013, click here.  For the 2012 list of clear lakes, click here.

Engbretson Underwater Photography Featured on Minnesota Bound Television Show

It was very cool to have Ron Schara do a little feature piece on our underwater photography on the latest episode of the Minnesota Bound television show.  I thought Ron did a nice job of telling my story and showing what an average day "at the office" is like. To see the video, click on the picture above, or go to this link.

The Biggest Challenges to Underwater Photography

I'm often asked what the biggest challenge is to taking underwater fish pictures.  Well, there are quite a few obstacles and many things that have to be right to be able to get a good picture.  First, the water has to be clear, which is actually a greater challenge than you might think.  Freshwater lakes are typically pretty crummy so finding lakes that have the necessary clarity is an ongoing process.  I usually won't even look at a lake if the clarity isn't at least 18 feet.  Water clarity can change from week to week and season to season too, so even though I have my favorite lakes, they’re not always clear enough to work in.  Everything starts with water clarity and if you don’t have that, nothing else matters.  It’s always a challenge to find clear water.

Once I find a clear lake, I have to find fish.  Next I have to find fish of desirable size.  This is easier said than done too.  It's always a problem especially these days when it seems like there’s fewer and fewer really nice fish available.  If I do find a lake that’s clear and it does have a few good fish, another challenge is getting close enough to photograph them.  I like to be 2 or 3 feet away.  Any further and I won’t take a picture at all.  Fish often times have a problem with a diver being that close, so it takes a lot of patience to even get close enough to think about composing a picture.  But once I have clear water, good fish, and get close enough to shoot them, I still have to make the shot.  So even if everything else is right, sometimes I blow it all on the final step because I was moving, or the composition is bad or I forgot to turn on the strobe, etc.….

A lot goes wrong.  Sometimes I feel like it’s truly a miracle to get any good pictures at all because so many things that I can’t control have to be right all at the same time.

Conditions underwater are typically very hostile to a photographer.  The lakes and rivers where I shoot can be very cold.  In rivers, currents can be strong, and visibility is always an issue.  Underwater photography is inherently tricky.  Water is 800 times thicker than air, and there's always particles floating around or algae and things like that, so you've never going to get the really "clean" look you can get shooting through air. The water is often cold, the fish can be elusive, and you've got to always be concerned about your air supply, so there's a lot to think about. The light underwater is very poor too, so often I have to carry underwater strobes to illuminate subjects in deeper water. If you can imagine taking photos on a dark, cold, foggy, windy day… that sort of comes close to the everyday conditions of the environment I work in.  Saltwater environments are infinitely easier.  The water’s 100 times clearer, there’s 100 times more light, and ocean fish are used to seeing very large things swimming around them.  In freshwater, you look like Godzilla to those poor fish.

So, yes-the challenges are many, but as I always say, "If it was easy, everyone would be doing this".

Fish Sticks-The Habitat Management Tool That's Giving Wisconsin Lakes A Make-Over

 

Fish Sticks are assembled on lake ice over the winter. (DNR Photo)

In pre-settlement times, the near shore areas of all of Wisconsin’s lakes were filled with vast amounts of fallen trees.  Due to natural decay and storms that toppled large trees into lakes, our waters contained impressive amounts of timber that provided important habitat for fish and other species.  Today, those natural shorelines and their abundance of downed trees can only be found in a few places.  Lakes like those in Michigan’s undisturbed Sylvania Wilderness Area for example, give us a glimpse of the way all our lakes looked at one time.

As Wisconsin was settled and lakes were developed, shoreline trees were removed to make swimming beaches or to create an “uncluttered” look.  Large trees still growing along the shores were cut down to provide vistas of the lake for home owners to gaze at from their cottage windows.  In a short period of time, most of the wood on Wisconsin’s lakes was gone, eliminating a critical habitat element important to a wide variety of animals who made their homes in or near the lakes.

Today, we recognize the damage we’ve done by removing trees and interrupting the eons old process that replenished our lakes with a constant source of wood.  While it may take hundreds of years to restore our lakes to begin to resemble their original state, one innovative idea is jump-starting the process.  Referred to as “Fish Sticks”, it’s a way to move wood back to our lakes that’s been lost.  Fish sticks were made popular in Wisconsin by Bayfield County Fisheries Biologist Scott Toshner.  He’s worked on more than twenty fish sticks projects in the past four years.  "People tend to clean up their shorelines and remove fallen trees," said Toshner. "Sometimes the trees never get the chance to naturally fall into the water because lawns have taken over eliminating trees, shrubs, and ground cover. Fortunately, some northern Wisconsin communities are taking action to turn back the clock and restore the habitat on which fish, frogs, turtles, bugs, songbirds, ducks, and other critters thrive. Not only that, but they're good for water quality and shoreline protection, too."

Last year, a similar project, called “tree-drops” began on Florence County’s Lake Emily.  Tree drops are helpful but differ in that they usually involve single trees.  While their impact is important, a single tree can’t do the same job as multiple fish sticks.  Dr. Mike Bozek, formally of UW-Stevens Point, has studied this distinction.  “Submerged trees located closer to other submerged trees result in greater numbers and diversity of fish compared to individual trees. Larger numbers of submerged trees create a mosaic of habitats over greater shoreline areas than single trees do. This underscores the importance of riparian areas. We need to manage entire riparian areas and develop complex littoral zone habitats, not just individual trees.” 

As science has begun to better understand the importance of woody habitat in lakes, one type of habitat enhancement that’s been used on Wisconsin’s lakes for generations is on the way out.  In recent years, Fish cribs, have fallen out of favor with fish managers.  New studies show it’s a poor substitute for more natural and legitimate types of fish habitat like fish sticks.   "With the fish cribs, the one thing you kind of miss with them is the link between the near shore area where a lot of these fish spawn and spend their lives as juveniles ... [With fish sticks] the wood in this near shore area may be a missing link in terms of habitat in some of these lakes," Toshner said. 

To further illustrate the difference between single tree drops and fish sticks complexes, we can look to Bony Lake in Bayfield County.  This 191 acre lake was one of the first to employ fish sticks.  To date, more than 400 trees have been added to the lake, and they’re not done yet.  This may seem like a whole lot of wood, but in truth, it’s only a fraction of what the lake would have contained had shoreline property not been radically altered by development. Toshner hopes that as users of lakes, we’ll redefine our idea of what beauty is and discard our desire to create white sandy beaches and instead embrace the wild, unorganized, and natural look of shorelines comprised of fallen trees.  “Fish sticks projects are paying off in northern Wisconsin lakes by providing critical habitat for fish and insects, birds, turtles and frogs," says Toshner. “Beaches are really ecological deserts which don’t support any habitat or sustain any life”. 

A new streamlined permit available from the state and an easy step-by-step guide for fish sticks is now available from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.  This will help lake associations or individuals get started with their own lake improvement projects that incorporate fish sticks.  Scott Toshner is excited about the changing landscapes of our lakes and is optimistic about how as stewards we’ll make better decisions in the future.  "If people can see that trees in the near shore area are a valuable resource, they're less likely to remove a tree that might fall in along their own shoreline."

My Best Advice For New Underwater Photographers

There’s always room for more good photographers, and I think interest in underwater subjects will continue. I encourage beginners to learn about their subjects. Become an expert on the life and behavior of your animal subjects. Become a steward of their habitat. Think of yourself as a PR person for that particular animal. If you do this, you’ll show them in the best light, you’ll be mindful of disturbing them, and your work will automatically show these creatures at their most magnificent. Don’t sell pictures. Instead, fall in love with your subjects and sell that love! And instead of exploiting them for personal profit, you’ll become partners with them in calling attention to their inherent beauty and value in the ecosystem, and the special problems each one of them face in an increasingly crowded world.

Engbretson Underwater Photography is always on the look-out for talented underwater shooters.  If you work in freshwater environments and you're interested in joining our team contact us today.

What are the Clearest Lakes in Wisconsin? 2012

I was talking to Jennifer Filbert at the Wisconsin DNR the other day.  Jennifer manages the data for the state-wide citizen's lake monitoring group.  They're a network of individuals, usually lake-front property owners who monitor and regularly take a variety of water samples from lakes all across Wisconsin.  The data they compile helps to give us a look at how our lakes are doing. One of the many tasks lake monitors perform is to take regular sechi disc readings.  This is a universal way of assessing and comparing water clarity.  I was interested to know which Wisconsin inland lakes were the clearest.  Jennifer sent me a spreadsheet of some really comprehensive data and I thought it would be interesting to pass this along.  Here are the lakes that recorded the highest average water clarity in 2012.  In short-here are Wisconsin's clearest lakes and their average water clarity in 2012:

1) Black Oak Lake-Vilas Co.-35 feet
2) Wazee Lake-Jackson Co.-30 feet
3) Keyes Lake-Florence Co.-27 feet
4) Maiden Lake-Oconto Co.-27 feet
5) Lake Owen-Bayfield Co.-25 feet
6) Stormy Lake-Vilas Co.-25 feet
7) Blue Lake-Oneida Co.-24 feet
8) Presque Isle Lake-Vilas Co-24 feet
9) Mildred Lake-Oneida Co.-23 feet
10) Boot Lake-Oconto Co.-22 feet
11) Lake Lucerne-Forest Co.-22 feet
12) Whitefish Lake-Douglas Co.-22 feet
13) Deer Lake-Polk Co.-22 feet
14) Pike Lake Chain-Bayfield Co.-21 feet
15) Sand Lake-Burnett Co.-21 feet

(Note: To see an updated list of 2013, click here.)