Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations The Land of Sky Blue Waters

At least around the edges!

Dwight,

If I didn't know any better I'd swear that was northern Indiana where I live.

nice pics dwight, beee-utiful water. pic 4 made me think you sure have a compound of which to be proud.

Dwight, hadn't thought of Hamms Beer in years. Now, the ditty is going through my mind. Do they still make and sell it? I figure you will know.

Cecil, Granger Indiana latitude is 41.74. Hardwick, Minnesota Latitude is 43.78. Not all that far apart. I bet the average temperature in Granger is quite a bit warmer with that big lake next door.

Dave IED, Thanks Dave. The water is amazingly clear when you consider that I have had the circulator running 24/7 for the last couple weeks. I didn’t check, but the Secchi would probably be visible at 6 feet.

Dave D, The Hamm’s Beer brewery is gone. The last time I had one was back when I was too young to drink beer. If you want to learn more about Hamm’s Beer, check this out: Hamm's Beer website

Dwight,

I heard there was some "fish kill" at Split Rock Creek.
Good to see no dead ones at your pond. I will keep you
up to date on Split Rock as it opens up and let you know
the total damage.

the stick

...wait 'til ya read some stuff about Theo's PBR system

It has been a long cold winter! I wonder if there was water running over the dam all winter at Split Rock or if that was the problem.

That is some fascinating old brewery pics. I don't remember Hamms being a great beer but I've only found a few bad beers.

Hey Dwight, what are your thoughts on your pond, do you think you would have had any "fish kill" this winter without your fan unit running?

the stick

Dwight,

Thanks for the post. Looks beautiful.

I'm of that age when see "the land of sky blue waters" and immediately think of the Hamms Bear.

While I was in college I was fortunate to work concurrently for several radio and TV stations in Duluth and Superior. Many a night I signed the 10:00 PM news on and off with the Hamms bear on Channel 3 (KDAL-TV in those days).



Anyway, glad to see you guys are finally thawing out. As a kid north of you, there were a number of times when we missed the opening of trout season due to ice and snow, and there were times when we weren't sure we'd even make the opening of Northern and Bass season on the first Saturday of May.

Ken

I don't have an answer on the fish kill possibilities, other than the circulator couldn't hurt.

Dwight -- you have the ideal northern pond. Actually, I'm hugely jealous.

Do you guys remember the Nov/Dec 2007 issue of Pond Boss magazine where I discussed buying or building a northern pond. I could have written that article about Dwight. Hmmmmmm, maybe I did.......

Thanks Dave, you helped make it that way.

That article is fresh in my mind.

I was going to harass you about one small factual anomaly, but forgot about it. The deepest area in the pond is 15 feet and most of it is 10-12 feet deep. I believe you had it a 6 feet in the article.

One thing I can add to your comment near the end of the article, "sand and gravel have value". The gravel is very valuable. My entire pond project including buying the 11 acres of land that it sits on was $4,000. Of course, after it was completed, I started spending like a drunken sailor on all the mandatory accessories.

6 feet? You get ice thicker than that, don't you, Dwight?

Theo, Well, almost half that. It wouldn't leave much room for a temperature gradient top to bottom!

Actually, I manage one sand/gravel pit north of town that is only 8 feet deep (counting ice in winter, theo), and it has not winterkilled since I started working on it in the late 1980s. That was probably the source of my comment. I'm with you, though, Dwight. More is better. 10 is better than 8; 12 is better than 10, etc. It probably stops somewhere, but I don't know at what depth that would be. For our hill ponds, 20 feet isn't enough in the bad winters!

It seems to me that there was someone in south eastern Minnesota (?) that has a pond that is mostly 6 feet deep. I just can't remember who.

I'm in east central MN, north of the metro area about 50 miles. My pond is not deeper than six feet except for one area about 20 by 50 feet which is 7 to 8 feet. I have my aerator right on the edge of the deep hole and intestingly enough the fish stay away from it. They seem to hang out all winter in 5 to 6 feet of water. And that's before ice, with 1.5 feet of ice that only leaves 3 to 4 feet of water underneath. I've never had a winter kill. My pond is about 1/4 open now and so far only one floater this year. I usually have two to three floaters each spring. I've always been amazed that this works but I think Dave hit it on the head some time ago when he theorized that my fish probably survive because my pond is dug down into the water table. That means that I've got a more or less constant spring source feeding from the bottom. This would tend to keep the ice from getting too thick. The local lakes around here had 4 feet of ice this winter while my pond still only got to about 18 or 20 inches. I also keep the pond plowed so that keeps sunlight available. Go figure, I only know it's worked for six winters now. Thanks guys now I can't get the silly Hamm's song and the bears (not beers) out of my head.

Hi BZ. Good to hear from you.

The Thursday before easter, I was down in Council Bluffs, Iowa, picking up the grandson. Now stick with me. I have a point. Suddenly, the phone rings. It's my advisor from Colorado State University (that was just a "few" years ago), and he's calling because he needs my help on a pond. I say, of course, what could I tell you that you don't know. He doesn't even listen to me. It's a crisis, and the diesel engine is running. He's at his "duck ranch" on the Platte River in southwestern Nebraska. He digging a one acre pond down near the river in the sand bed. He can't get more than 6 feet of depth, and as they've been at it for 2 days, he's ready to quit. He knows he needs 8-10 ft to get through the winter. He's calling for encouragement. I tell him the story of my 8-ft pond and BZ's 6-ft pond clear up here in the north country. He's decides to give it a "test." He got 6-7 feet of depth, and one acre, and he considers it an experiment to see if he makes the winter. I'll keep you udpated, BZ!

Thats all my Dad would drink was Hamms.....We even named our cat Hamms....Honest Ingian!

bz, Thanks for your post! I apologize for not remembering you are the one with the 6 foot pond. I will never forget again!

We are supposed to have two 60ish degree days before a rain event Sunday. If we get some wind, it could be the end of the ice until next winter. This is a very good thing.

Dwight,

Won't be long now before the hostess makes the call....."Bremer, barge party of 30!"

Time for a Bremer Barge - reef party. You take a string with a hook (or lure of choice) and from the BB lower your empty C bottle and place it on the C reef all while watching from the aqua-view. You can even make a movie. --

Russ,
ewest,

All good ideas. I better get er done!