05-05-2005, 09:16 PM
I just heard a radio advertisment yesterday on KSL for the new Saratoga marina on the west side. They were doing a nice sales job on it, talking about how much money they have sunk into the marina and facilities. One of the things they mentioned was the water quality of the lake, saying that even though it isn't crystal clear it is still "perfectly clean", and that the public has a bad perception of it that needs to change.
Some say the murkiness is contributed mostly to a silty bottom, shallow depths, lack of structure, lack of vegetation, and frequent winds to stir it all up like a beater in a bowl. If it sat perfectly calm for a length of time then it would clear right up, but mother nature won't allow that.
On the other hand, I have read that when the pioneers first came to the valley in the mid-late 1800's the lake was clear and blue, with a rocky bottom, and full of native cutthroat trout. This source claimed that after the introduction of carp, all bottom vegetation was killed and it then silted in. Another source blames it on the pioneers netting out the spawning cutts, and improper farming practices and sewage disposal. Environmental laws now help protect it, and they claim the lake is slowly cleaning itself, but will never be a trout lake again.
I don't know how true any of this is. My personal opinion is that the lake is much cleaner than it looks. I wouldn't hesitate to eat its fish.
[walleye]
Some say the murkiness is contributed mostly to a silty bottom, shallow depths, lack of structure, lack of vegetation, and frequent winds to stir it all up like a beater in a bowl. If it sat perfectly calm for a length of time then it would clear right up, but mother nature won't allow that.
On the other hand, I have read that when the pioneers first came to the valley in the mid-late 1800's the lake was clear and blue, with a rocky bottom, and full of native cutthroat trout. This source claimed that after the introduction of carp, all bottom vegetation was killed and it then silted in. Another source blames it on the pioneers netting out the spawning cutts, and improper farming practices and sewage disposal. Environmental laws now help protect it, and they claim the lake is slowly cleaning itself, but will never be a trout lake again.
I don't know how true any of this is. My personal opinion is that the lake is much cleaner than it looks. I wouldn't hesitate to eat its fish.
[walleye]