Fishing Lake Esau

Lake Esau offers a diverse fishery anchored by excellent smallmouth bass fishing and a stocked walleye population. Smallmouth bass grow 0.5 inches above state average and range up to 18 inches, with strong year classes from 1998 and 2001 providing abundant 14-17 inch fish. The bass population spans ages 1-8 and thrives in the lake's sand, gravel and boulder substrate. Walleye fishing depends entirely on DNR stocking every other year at 73 fish per acre - 100% of sampled fish showed stocking marks. While walleye grow 2.2 inches below state average, they reach legal size with fish ranging 14-19 inches and some growing to 20 inches. The poor walleye growth may result from high density of age-5 fish or limited food availability. Yellow perch are abundant but historically small, though size structure has improved since the 1960s with growth now slightly above average. Rock bass dominate the panfish catch at 43% but grow below average. The lake doesn't thermally stratify in summer, maintaining uniform temperature and dissolved oxygen from surface to 27-foot maximum depth. This shallow, clear lake (10-foot Secchi depth) has low productivity with total phosphorus at just 0.007-0.016 mg/L. Northern pike were abundant in the 1980s with above-average growth but disappeared by 2003. Round goby and zebra mussels are present but smallmouth bass help control invasive species. The limestone quarry operation historically supplemented water levels with 6 million gallons daily of filtered water.