OutdoorNebraska

NEBRASKAland Magazine • Fishing the Sandhills carp removed and barriers constructed to keep them out, the lakes now boast excellent water quality and vegetation is returning. The fish are growing and reproducing rapidly and should reach keeper-sized proportions in 2017. A 12-inch minimum length limit placed on yellow perch should provide trophy potential, but it may be 2018 before fish reach that size. Monitoring in the years to come will determine if the regulation is successful and will remain in place. The lakes are connected by a narrow bottleneck. Beaver, the western lake, is the deeper of the two, reaching 12 feet in places, compared to 6 or 7 feet on Rat. A primitive boat ramp serving both lakes is located on the south side of Rat Lake on land leased from the Rat and Beaver Sportsman's Club, and anglers are asked to park within the designated areas only. While the WMA includes 240 acres of public land, all of it is located on the north side of the lake and only accessible by boat. The entire south shore is private land, and no bank fishing or other access is allowed. Valentine National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Cherry County, 16S, 6W, 8S of Valentine. Rice Lake 47 Acres. Bluegill, Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch. Rice Lake is only 6 feet deep when water levels are highest and extremely prone to winterkill when drought takes up to half of that depth. The drought in the 2000s killed the lake, but it was restocked in 2010 and 2011 and is now producing keeper-sized fish. Access is by foot only from the parking lot at Duck Lake, a three-fourths of a mile walk. Anglers generally fish Rice Lake with waders, float tubes or through the ice. Duck Lake 66 Acres. Bluegill, Bullhead, Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch. This lake is blessed with exceptionally clear water and can be a very productive panfish lake, boasting bluegills 10 inches or longer and yellow perch 12 inches or longer. West Long Lake 62 Acres. Bluegill, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch. This long, narrow lake has always provided quality bluegill and perch fishing, especially during the winter months, as it does have excessive vegetation during the summer. Watts Lake 230 Acres. Bluegill, Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch. This lake was renovated in 2015 and the response by vegetation and fish was rapid. Anglers can expect to see keeper-sized panfish in 2017. Biologists did not stock Because of the invertebrates they support, bluegills and other fish are often found in and around aquatic vegetation in Sandhils lakes, which in this photo includes pondweed and coontail. R ● 29 D 66 ● 30 PHOTO BY ERIC FOWLER W 62 ● 31 W 230 ● 32

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