Wadop

Wadop Lake is a 39.8 acre lake located 12.0 miles west of Isabella, MN. The shoreline around the lake is primarily mixed coniferous forest and bog. One cabin with a dock was found on the southwest shore. Just under half of the shoreline is under private ownership with the remainder being federal ownership. The maximum depth of the lake is 9.0 feet. Water is fairly clear with a light green tint with visibility to the bottom. There were numerous springs found in the southeast portion of the lake. Twenty-eight aquatic plants were observed in the survey. Muck and detritus were the most abundant substrates with areas of gravel and rubble present. The lake access road (USFS Rd. #383A) is located off of the Bandana Lake Road (USFS Rd. #383) about 0.6 miles north of State Highway One. Drive down the access road for around 0.3 miles to a small parking spot on the side of the road at an old logging site. The 100 yard carry-down trail starts at the edge of a logging cut with the final 20 yards being a carry across a bog. Fishing pressure is presumed to be light on Wadop Lake. A standard survey was conducted in 2015 which was the first investigation on the lake since 1985. The 2015 survey was performed to assess the quality of the fishery and document the aquatic habitat in the lake. The survey also sought to determine if the lake contained bass and sunfish as local reports stated the species were present in the lake. The 2015 gill net catch for Northern Pike was above average for the lakes of similar characteristics. The average size of Northern Pike was 21.9 inches, and the average weight of 2.7 pounds was above average for the area. The largest pike sampled was 30.5 inches and weighed 6.9 pounds. Seven year classes were represented in the sampled and growth appears to be slightly above average for the Finland Area. The Yellow Perch gill net catch was slightly below average for the lake class. The trap net catch for Yellow Perch was above average for the lake class. A total of 64 perch were caught in gill nets and trap nets and averaged 6.1 inches in length. The largest perch sampled was 7.7 inches and weighed 0.2 pounds. Growth of Yellow Perch appears to be fast for the Finland Area. Although Yellow Perch are below the desired size for most anglers, they provide important forage for Northern Pike. The White Sucker catch was below average and below the catch in previous surveys on the lake. The average size was 6.5 inches and 0.1 pounds in weight. Three Pumpkinseed Sunfish were sampled with trap nets in 2015 for the first time in the lake's history. A single young-of-year Largemouth Bass was sampled and was also the first time the species was seen in an investigation. Near shore fish community species in the lake consists of Iowa Darter, Johnny Darter, Blacknose Shiner, Common Shiner, Fathead Minnow, Finescale Dace, Golden Shiner, Norther Pearl Dace, Northern Redbelly Dace, Tadpole Madtom, and Western Blacknose Dace.

Northern Pike catch in the gillnet was slightly over the area average and all the fish were over 25". The Yellow Perch catch was very high with catches 8 times the area average in the gillnet and 3 times the area average in the trapnets.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, and Pumpkinseed in Wadop. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for Wadop. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

Wadop has a maximum depth of 9 feet and a mean depth of 6 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Wadop is from 2015. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

No invasive species are on record for Wadop in Minnesota DNR data. Always clean, drain, and dry your equipment to help keep it that way.