Scuttlebutt about Martha Lake (Alderwood Manor)

[TroutSnipr]

So I've been skunked here six times now. In the beginning (a couple weeks ago) the trollers were doing ok, and I saw some fish come from the shore around the boat launch. Lately even the trollers have been coming in empty and there have been fewer and fewer people fishing at the boat launch area. I figured maybe it was just the never ending run of low pressure systems we have had lately.

Tonight a couple of locals I see there regularly said that WDFW had been out in the early AM the last couple days netting every fish they could get a hold of. While I was there 4 WDFW employees showed up with the shock boat a little before 8PM and I asked what was up. I basically got the 'We could tell you but then we'd have to kill you!" type response. Anyone have any idea what's going on there? It's really the only place that is close enough to stop on the way home from work for me so I don't want to waste my time if they have removed all the fish here.

[natetreat]

That's strange, haven't heard anything about that. Seems fishy though, I haven't a clue why they'd do that.

[TroutSnipr]

Well I know the WDFW guys (3 guys and a girl) were there with the shock boat tonight because they unloaded it about 3 feet away from me.

[SculpinKing]

Well, that's disappointing. I was hoping to get up there for bass in the next week, but if they're yanking fish out it might not be worth it. There could be a simple explanation like they're doing a fish survey of the lake or doing shock boat training (it is only a mile away from the Mill Creek WDFW office so that would make a lot of sense as a chosen location). Seems weird that they wouldn't just give you a straight answer, however. I'll send them an email and see what I can find out.

[TroutSnipr]

That'd be great...I hate getting skunked. I want to catch a damn trout outta that place just for peace of mind so I don't feel like I'm wasting my time!

[Gringo Pescador]

Were they pulling ALL fish or just trout?

[SculpinKing]

An even more broad question would be, do you know for sure that they were physically removing all the fish they shocked from the scene? The lake surveys I've read include both netting and electro-shocking, but I believe the fish are released afterwards.

[TroutSnipr]

The 2 people I talked to that live nearby said they were netting them & taking them out in the wee hours of the morning the last few days. As far as what they were doing with the shock boat I couldn't tell because I was on foot at the boat launch and they went toward the north end of the lake out of view.

[geljockey]

They were probably doing a warmwater survey. In addition to the electrofishing (which always occurs at night) they also may have set some gillnets and fyke nets. The fish are measured, weighed, and scale samples may be taken. On occasion there might be some lethal sampling, but the goal is to release all the fish back into the lake with as little mortality as possible.

[SculpinKing]

The Program Manager for Freshwater Fisheries just emailed me back. I've asked him permission to post the full text of his email, but the gist of it is that it is indeed a standardized fish survey. The fish are caught using several standardized methods included nets and electro-fishing and all fish are returned to the water in good shape if possible. This is the first survey to be done at Martha.

Here's a link to the results of a similar survey that was done at Lake Stevens 15 years ago to give you an idea of what the end results look like:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00240/wdfw00240.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[SculpinKing]

I got permission to post the full information that Bruce sent me. Danny also emailed me and let me know that due to equipment issues they would be electrofishing this Monday as well. Props to both these gentlemen for quick, honest information. For whatever reason, DFW generally gets a bad rap among a lot of sportsman, but I've had very good luck every time I've emailed questions to them and I highly encourage everyone to take advantage of the resources we pay for.

Danny Garrett, our Region 4 Warmwater Program biologist is doing a “standardized survey” on Martha Lake this week. A standardized survey is a survey designed to get general fish community information on any given lake. It is “standardized” so all our staff that do these surveys do them the same way so the information can be compared from lake to lake and year to year. There are three different capture techniques used in the event one technique is biased for or against a particular size or species of fish. Martha Lake has not been surveyed before, so we wanted general information on its fish community so we know what is there and can therefore better manage it.

We are not removing fish and our staff is not being secretive about their activities. Some fish could be killed in the gill nets but all fish that are alive when we catch them are returned to the lake alive. We are never secretive about anything we do. We are always transparent and willing to provide any information that is requested.

Although some people are convinced that WDFW is only out there to mess things up, in reality, our mandate and goal is to manage our natural resources the best way we can and to provide as much recreational opportunity as we can, as long as it does not come at the cost of significant negative impacts to native species.

If you have any other questions or comments, please feel free to contact me directly.

Bruce

Bruce Bolding
Warmwater Fish Program Manager
600 Capital Way N
Olympia, WA 98501
360-902-8417
bruce.bolding@dfw.wa.gov

[TroutSnipr]

Well, it's good to find out what's really going on there. I guess I'll go punish myself some more after work tonight and see if I can catch something. It'll be interesting to see what all the survey brings to light when they publish it. thanks for poking around SculpinKing.

[natetreat]

I got the same sort of email in response to my questions. That's interesting, I want to know the results now! See if there are any monster bass sitting under those docks. I've caught some decent ones out of there, but I've always wondered.

[TroutSnipr]

Still got skunked tonight. There just isn't any bite left by the time I get off @ 6pm. :/

[zen leecher]

When fishing eastside lakes during the summer time I've found the trolling real good 20-25 feet deep. You might consider trolling deeper and going down in 5 feet increments until you find the fish. I'd start at 10 feet and work my way down.

[TroutSnipr]

I don't have a boat. I'm fishing from shore unfortunately.

[Gringo Pescador]

I don't have a boat. I'm fishing from shore unfortunately.

Well there's your problem! Just kidding. Keep at it, you'll get yours.

I only ever fished the lake for bass, so have no 1st hand experience with it for trout but.. I met a guy fishing from the dock once who said there was a dip in the lake bottom about 100' out from the dock and this is where he would have his luck, he would fish power bait about 2' off the bottom using a big slip sinker to get it out there.

[racfish]

Martha Lake has a sewer problem. Sewage was backed up into the lake. It was in the Seattle Times a while back.I guess it had alot of sewage. Residents were stymied about it. They probably dont want people catching and possibly eating the fish is my guess.

[SculpinKing]

Racfish, ignoring the fact that we already got our answer on what's happening, I can't find any Seattle Times article relating to a sewer leak in Martha Lake. There was a leak into North Creek, which runs a mile or so east of Martha Lake, in April. North Creek does not run into the lake. I would also note that signage was posted downstream of the spill notifying the public, which is almost certainly how any spill effecting a lake would be handled. No need for a black ops mission. That said, feel free to spread this rumor all you want, it'll just less competition out on the lake

[racfish]

There was a article about the Lake and they even showed some docks and residents complaining about it. Would I swear it was Martha? No... I thought so. Maybe Ballinger. It was a northend lake. I dont spread rumors about Martha. I dont care cuz I dont fish it. Its all yours Bubba.