DNR Southern Region Outdoor Column:

That was then, this is now

An Outdoor Column From: Tom Conroy DNR Information Officer 261 Highway 15 South New Ulm,MN 56073 507-359-6014 tom.conroy@dnr.state.mn.us August 21, 2006

Title: That was then, this is now There is a collection of photos in an album on my desk that were taken in 1989 and 1990. I'm in a number of the photos and I hardly recognize myself. Beyond that, I can hardly believe what I was doing when those photos were taken.

Minnesota was in a drought during those years, creating problems for farmers and others. Duck hunters were among the others. I was, and still am, an ardent duck hunter.

I was also much younger then and darned if my buddies and I were going to let a little drought stop us from pursuing our fall ritual. The photos of us push-poling boats through mud is proof of that.

In 1986 we had purchased a cabin on Swan Lake, the famed 10,000-acre waterfowl lake in Nicollet County. At that time, Swan Lake was derisively being referred to as the Dead Sea. Water levels had risen so high by 1986 after five consecutive years of high precipitation that the lake no longer was able to support the growth of aquatic vegetation. And without that vegetation, there was little reason for ducks to spend much time on the lake.

The water control structure (dam) in place at the time was inadequate to handle the outlet flow. Then, thanks to $280,000 in funding and engineering and construction help from Ducks Unlimited, a new water control structure was completed at the outlet in 1988. The DNR could now raise and lower water levels.

Prior to this, in 1986, the DNR had modified the current structure to allow some water to be released. Coincidentally, it was at this time that the prolonged drought began. By September of 1989, Swan Lake bore little resemblance to the lake that we had come to know just three years earlier.

Whereas in 1986 you could run an outboard motor the length and breadth of this lake, by the fall of 1989 a flat bottom push pole boat was the only way to move about. Even then travel was limited as water levels continued to recede. The goose opener came in late September that year, followed by the duck opener a week later. Younger muscles and determination allowed us to huff and puff our way to good hunting on both occasions.

By mid-October, however, it had come to an end. Water had all but disappeared from the lake, the ducks were largely gone, and sounds of silence had replaced the sounds of outboard motors, dog whistles, and shotgun blasts at Swan Lake.

In the spring of 1990, run-off and rain began to replenish the lake. By autumn, there was some hunting to be had but mostly for the hardy and resolute. Finally, in 1991, Swan Lake was back - and so were the ducks. Lots of ducks, thanks to lots of excellent aquatic vegetation.

In looking at the photos from those days, it quickly became apparent that push-poling through a hundred yards of mud as we did then is no longer an option. No way, no how. And that being the case, it is almost certain that we won't be doing much, if any, duck hunting at Swan Lake this coming fall.

Last November, carp were discovered in Swan Lake. Following public input meetings, the DNR quickly concluded that the carp must be eliminated before they did serious damage to the lake's water quality. And the surest, best way to do that would be to draw the lake down as far as possible, treat any remaining pockets of water with rotenone (a substance that kills fish), and then let winter conditions eliminate any carp that might still have survived.

The drawdown is well underway. The other night I gazed out at what little water remains in the bay in front of our cabin and reminisced about those days 16 and 17 years ago. Nothing was going to stop us back then. But, as the saying goes, that was then, this is now. Time takes its toll. But so do carp. In a year or two, Swan Lake will be much better off and the ducks will be back. So will we, with any luck. In the meantime, it's been a long time since I sat on a river sandbar with both a shotgun and a rod and reel. Might be fun.

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