Lake Profile: Evergreen Reservoir

[Don Wittenberger]

Evergreen Reservoir is an irrigation holding tank located about 3 miles northwest of George on I-90 in the Quincy Wildlife Area, which contains several popular fishing lakes and is jointly managed by the state Department of Natural Resources and the federal Bureau of Reclamation. Water is retained in the lake by a small head dam built in 1950 by the Bureau. The Wildlife Area lies in a depression surrounded by farms. You won't get a wilderness experience there; you can hear farm machinery operating nearby, and utility towers and power lines clutter the view.

This lake lies at an elevation of 1,200 feet, covers 235 surface acres, and has a maximum depth of 54 feet. Physically, it's long and narrow in an east-west direction with a pronounced arm or bay near the southwest end, and also has several small islands and coves. The shoreline is rocky and undeveloped. The lake is fairly deep in most places, but has some shallow flats and shelves, and underwater weedbeds with the outer weedlines in 12 to 17 feet of water if the water level is all the way up. The water nominally is moderately clear; but because it's irrigation runoff, it’s murky at times, and being full of nutrients it experiences heavy algae blooms in summer.

Evergreen receives a considerable amount of fishing pressure. A lake of this size can't support more than about 100 adult tiger muskies to begin with, and they’re likely getting harvested as soon as they reach legal size (36 inches) -- if not sooner. This adds up to a fishing prospect that’s not very enticing to a serious muskie angler: There aren't many fish to catch, and none of trophy size. Nevertheless, it's hard to resist wetting a line here if you're passing by on your way to or from somewhere else.

One thing this lake does have going for it is free camping. Outhouses are provided, but you must bring your own drinking water, and you're supposed to pack out your trash. Mosquitos are ubiquitous and tormenting. You’ll think you’re in the Canal Zone. A hermetically sealed RV, tent, or other shelter is utterly essential, even early and late in the season. Wear clothing that covers as much of your skin as possible and bring a gallon of DEET. The buzzing and biting is at its worst at sunset but continues all night. There are rattlesnakes in the Quincy refuge, but most are in the bluffs down toward the river. Nevertheless, keep your eyes and ears open if you walk off the road and parking areas. I carry a snakebite kit in my vehicle, and there is a hospital in Quincy about 5 miles away in event of need.

Unfortunately, the free camping attracts yahoos, which also detracts from the quality of the camping experience here. I've had to endure loud music, all-night partying, and watch low-lifes build bonfires on the beach and throw trash in the lake. Vandalism and theft don't seem to be major problems, but watch your stuff anyway. The area usually is patrolled by a DNR guy at least once a day, but that’s not enough to deter the boorish behavior.

Evergreen Lake has two concrete-plank boat ramps, one at each end. The roads to them are not connected, so you'll have to decide before getting to the lake which ramp to use. The closest to I-90 is the east ramp. From George, go north on Hwy. 281 to 2nd N.W. and turn west at the blue farmhouse; cross a bridge over an irrigation canal and follow the washboardy road to its end. You can camp in the large parking area. Alternatively, continue north on Hwy. 281 another 3 miles to 5th N.W. (a/k/a Golf Course Road), turn left (west) and in about 3 miles look for the sign indicating the turnoff into the wildlife area, then follow the dirt road past Burke Lake to the boat ramp at the west end of Evergreen Lake. If you continue following this road it’ll meander on top of a dike; it looks hairy but is negotiable by an RV or vehicle towing a boat if you take the turns and dips slowly. It'll eventually dump you back on Hwy. 281 near George.

The east ramp is free of hazards if you steer well to the right of the islands. The west ramp has a large submerged boulder a short distance out and slightly to the left which is a major menace to your prop and lower unit. If the water isn’t clear enough to see it, steer slightly to the right heading out from the ramp. To be completely safe, use your electric motor to get 100 feet or so from shore before firing up the big motor.

Don't leave your boat in the water overnight, or you may find it beached in the morning; the water level can drop as much as 4 feet overnight.

If there are any tiger muskies left in this lake, they’re probably hanging out in submerged weeds, so I fish over the weed tops with a bucktail. During water drawdown periods, the weed tops may be exposed above the water surface, in which case you have a slop situation, and need single-hook spinnerbaits to avoid constantly hanging up. You should also fish inner and outer weedlines. I often cast all the way up on the shoreline rocks because I've caught them from very shallow water in this lake. Generally, though, I expect to find them in weeds within the 8 to 12 foot depth zone. I like to use chartreuse bucktails and spinnerbaits when the water is murky because of their high visibility to the fish. I don't use crankbaits very much at Evergreen because I'm usually fishing in weeds where treble hooks will snag.

If there's anything in my lake profiles you'd like to contradict or add to, please feel free to post your own comments.

[gpc]

The wildlife area is great. It was my first time going there this year. I tried evergreen once for walleye not too hard but no luck. This res has potetial. The whole refuge is great. Its not even close in size to the Columbia natl. wildlife refuge, but it has a bigger variaty of fish. I still dont know how this works because the CNWR has some 200 lakes and the quincy wildlife area has a dozen or so. I grew up fishing the potholes and have only been to quincy twice but Im coming around. Im still yet to catch either of the tigers. (muski and trout) But there both in quincy

[muskyhunter]

Hey GPC,
Keep trying...you'll get one soon enough..I have read a few posts from this lake not many posts about alot of people pulling Muskie out of there. So theres got to be one with your name on its side.. A friend of mine pulled a Pike out of Moses lake a couple of years ago so you never know. Good luck