SULLIVAN — A quaint fishing spot south of Sullivan is about ready for use again after extensive efforts to rehabilitate it over the past five years.
Woods Lake will reopen Saturday after a celebration is held to mark the occasion, said Lee Mitchell, a natural resource specialist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Lake Shelbyville.
“We've been doing a lot of work in here,” Mitchell said. “It's been quite the undertaking to get ready.”
The 30-acre lake was drained after a pipe failed and the water quality had degraded over time, Mitchell said. About 9 feet of silt was dug out and structures, including a partially covered handicapped fishing pier on the west side of the lake added before the lake was again filled with water.
About 1,400 acres drains into Woods Lake, which Mitchell said means it can fill quickly, and changes in the water level needed to be accounted for while constructing the wooden structures.
Volunteers have assisted in the construction process, including the AMBUCS – Sullivan Chapter with the fishing pier and the courtesy boat dock was built as part of a Boy Scouts service project, Mitchell said.
Efforts have been under way to restock the lake with a healthy fish population, Mitchell said. Anyone fishing at the lake is asked not to add more fish or dump their bait buckets into the water, he said.
“The first year it will be catch and release only,” Mitchell said. “It's still not quite ready. We don't want help in stocking it.”
The types of fish that can be found in the lake include bass, bluegill, crappie, redear sunfish and channel catfish, Mitchell said. Many of those are still young and small, he said.
The number of carp in the water has been concerning, said Mike Mounce, an Illinois Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist. Mounce was using an electric shock fishing method earlier this week to search for and remove carp from the lake.
“We want to keep carp numbers down,” Mounce said. “They can be extremely destructive and harmful to vegetation in the lake.”
Mitchell said other work in the area has included adding a loop road to access the fishing points on the west side of the lake and clearing brush and trees on both sides in part to improve visibility.
“It's shaping up well,” Mitchell said. “I think people will like it.”
Activities scheduled from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, kids fishing tournament, hot dog roast, National Wild Turkey Federation archery and BB gun stations, canoe paddling lessons and boat rides. A plaque listing the partners that helped with the project will be unveiled during the ceremony, Mitchell said.
The west side of the lake, where the celebration will take place, is accessible off County Road 1000E north of the Bruce-Findlay Road and just west of Illinois 32.
Another access point to the east side of the lake is located directly off Illinois 32.
Woods Lake will reopen Saturday after a celebration is held to mark the occasion, said Lee Mitchell, a natural resource specialist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Lake Shelbyville.
“We've been doing a lot of work in here,” Mitchell said. “It's been quite the undertaking to get ready.”
The 30-acre lake was drained after a pipe failed and the water quality had degraded over time, Mitchell said. About 9 feet of silt was dug out and structures, including a partially covered handicapped fishing pier on the west side of the lake added before the lake was again filled with water.
About 1,400 acres drains into Woods Lake, which Mitchell said means it can fill quickly, and changes in the water level needed to be accounted for while constructing the wooden structures.
Volunteers have assisted in the construction process, including the AMBUCS – Sullivan Chapter with the fishing pier and the courtesy boat dock was built as part of a Boy Scouts service project, Mitchell said.
Efforts have been under way to restock the lake with a healthy fish population, Mitchell said. Anyone fishing at the lake is asked not to add more fish or dump their bait buckets into the water, he said.
“The first year it will be catch and release only,” Mitchell said. “It's still not quite ready. We don't want help in stocking it.”
The types of fish that can be found in the lake include bass, bluegill, crappie, redear sunfish and channel catfish, Mitchell said. Many of those are still young and small, he said.
The number of carp in the water has been concerning, said Mike Mounce, an Illinois Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist. Mounce was using an electric shock fishing method earlier this week to search for and remove carp from the lake.
“We want to keep carp numbers down,” Mounce said. “They can be extremely destructive and harmful to vegetation in the lake.”
Mitchell said other work in the area has included adding a loop road to access the fishing points on the west side of the lake and clearing brush and trees on both sides in part to improve visibility.
“It's shaping up well,” Mitchell said. “I think people will like it.”
Activities scheduled from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, kids fishing tournament, hot dog roast, National Wild Turkey Federation archery and BB gun stations, canoe paddling lessons and boat rides. A plaque listing the partners that helped with the project will be unveiled during the ceremony, Mitchell said.
The west side of the lake, where the celebration will take place, is accessible off County Road 1000E north of the Bruce-Findlay Road and just west of Illinois 32.
Another access point to the east side of the lake is located directly off Illinois 32.
Resource: http://herald-review.com/news/local/recreation/rehabilitated-woods-lake-set-to-reopen/article_2f7da7be-dbb1-5074-9be3-0f961eb97e71.html
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