Thank you for all the replies! I am very excited about taking on the management of this pond. I managed one when I was quite young and it did really well, but it was just an acre and a half in size.
Using the info you all have provided, I am going to stick with my varieties of trees (White Pine, Birch, Cedars and a few others in very limited numbers). All my selections appear to be growing quite well in the area with the added bonus of giving me the environment and feel I am wanting long term. I am planning to plant the trees AT LEAST 15-25 feet back from the lake shore (some will be even further back), depending on the variety and it's expected mature size (for long term sustainability in the plantings. I want the appearance of trees being right on the lake, but they'll be easier to maintain at that distance and still give that more intimate/private feeling when you're out on the water.
The only thing that I am still unsure of is the distance I should plant trees from the dam. I don't want to cause any problems, but I would like to get a few trees as close as I SAFELY can.
To answer some questions several of you had (not really related to my original question but I just can't stop talking about this thing):
-=CURRENT FISH=-
Currently contains your standard BG, LMB and CC mix. Possibly a few walleye. They were stocked about 4 years ago at 8", but I'm not sure they have survived as previous owner said he has not caught any, but I'm not sure they have really targeted them either. I have not had a chance to fish it yet, but being an avid walleye fisherman, I should be able to find out pretty quickly what their status is once I get a line in a few times. I honestly doubt they made it though. The previous owner states he has kept it carp free, but I am pretty certain I spotted a few near the shoreline upon my last visit. I can live with a few, but if I see two many, it'll be crossbow time. The LMB are thick around the shoreline. Most appear to be in the 14-16" range. I spotted one that was likely close to 20". The frogs are absolutely thick along the shore. As I walk along and scare the frogs into the water the bass go nuts and boil the water. Saw a group of about a dozen 20-25" CC that were hanging out in a little "ditch" area about 3 feet deep (spawning?).
I'd like to add some RES for sure. Possibly some HSB. Would love to add several more such as SMB, YP, WB, WC or BC but I worry about survivability with some and worse, overcompetition with existing fish with others.
-=Water Structure and Weeds=-
The lake appears to have been really well managed. Water clarity is really good for a pond in this area (about 4 feet). Invasive plants have been well controlled. Chara is a bit thick in the 2-3 foot zone but not to the point of being an issue. Owner states he drains the pond down about 3 feet every 2 or 3 years to kill the chara off, and it looks like that has been a solid method for this pond. FA is almost non existent. Very limited amounts in just a few spots. Not enough to care about at all (as long as it stays that way. hehe). Pond is not aerated and never has been according to previous owner.
Here's another picture. This time an overhead that is a year or so old. Top is north. Ignore yellow line. It's an old plat line that is now gone. The two little penninsulas (I guess that's what you'd call them) on the east shore are actually quite large. The top one is about 180 feet long and between 20 and 22 feet wide. The bottom one is about 90 feet long and 25 feet wide. There is a huge half finished wood dock in the southeast corner. There are two small islands about 20x20 feet in size on the west side basically straight west from the tip of the northern most penninsula. They are shown in this pic but have been dug out more since this pic was taken and seem to be quite stable.
Thanks again everyone for the advice. I'm quite excited!!!
