~ History ~

Since the early 1950's there have been various efforts to improve the lake conditions. The Black Otter Lake District was formed in 1976 to help restore and protect the lake. In 1982, 1992 and again in 2002, lake studies that resulted in management plans were completed. The Village and BlackOtter Lake District (BOLD) have followed up on many of the recommendations proposed from past management plans. In 1989, the lake was drained and approximately 120,000 cubic yards of sediment were removed from a 55 acre portion of the lake. In January 2003 the most recent lake management study was completed. This study found high levels of nutrients continued to enter the lake. A small-scale aeration system was installed in the lake in order to maintain a viable fishery.

Permit to proceed with the drawdown was received August 7 after the completion of the DNR Hearing on July 15.

We will be removing the first board from the dam on Friday August 29 & are scheduled to have the fish out & lake down by October 1. The purpose of the drawdown is to greatly reduce the Eurasion water milfoil and Cury Leaf Pondweed through freezing this winter. The fish will be transfered to a nearing Posd to be saved through the winter.


The most popular uses of Black Otter Lake include open water fishing (62%), bird watching(56%) and scenic viewing (75%),
with at least half of respondents indicating that they engage in these activities at least once each year. Respondents reported that the activities they don’t engage in at all on Black Otter Lake include ice fishing (54%), pleasure boating (72%), canoeing/kayaking (78%), and swimming (93%).