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Posts: 71
Location: Waukesha, WI | What are the lake temperatures in Northern Wisconsin? Have the smaller lakes or the big lakes turned over yet? During turnover, fish seen to scatter and are very hard to find. Is the water cold enough, so that muskies are eating again? At what temperature does turnover happen? |
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Posts: 699
Location: Hugo, MN | Turnover in the strictest sense occurs at 39 degrees F which is the temp at which H2O is most dense.
In the Fall turnover is much different than in the Spring as Fall "turnover" begins with a gradual mixing between Epilimnion and Metalimnion. Imagine a Lake with with a Thermocline at 50 degrees which is about average for a Dimictic Lake. As the Epilimnion (uppermost layer) cools it becomes more dense that the Metalimnion (second layer) and the two layers begin to mix and eventually stratify. Next they begin to interact with the Hyplimnion and stratify further. Eventaully the water will cool to 39 at which point that layer will sink and the cooler(below 39) less dense water will begin to rise.
The mixing part in the fall is what most people refer to as turnover. The good news is that Oxygen is abundant at all levels in the fall, the bad news that means fish can be found at any level in the lake. Which is why we all hate "Turnover" |
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Posts: 2515
Location: Waukesha & Land O Lakes, WI | Yes, turnover has either begun or is in the process on many northern Wisconsin lakes. The lake I'm on was about 52-53 and has turned over. We fished the deepest parts of the lake (12-13ft) and found many dead and dying weeds, shallower water still had a heep of healthy green cabbage. |
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Lake Temperature and Turnover