Pickerel Lake

How big is Pickerel Lake?

How deep is Pickerel Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Pickerel Lake?

What are the closest cities to Pickerel Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Pickerel Lake?

Pickerel Lake is managed for northern pike, with a long range goal of maintaining a population with a minimum gill net catch of 3.5 fish/set, with some fish over 25 inches present. This was the third of three assessments scheduled in the 2005 lake management plan to provide comparative information to be used in the evaluation of a special regulation covering northern pike in Little Cascade Lake, in Cook County.

Northern pike were relatively abundant in Pickerel Lake in 2012, and some larger fish were present. Management goals for the lake were met in 2012. The gill net catch was the highest seen to date in this lake, and exceeded the normal range for the lake class. The mean weight for northern pike taken in gill nets was similar to means observed in Pickerel Lake since 1998, and fish over 25 inches in length were collected in gill nets and trap nets. Five naturally-produced year classes contributed to the catch, and recruitment appeared to have been fairly steady. Growth had been somewhat faster than average; three-year-old fish reached a mean length of 18.7 inches at the end of their third year, compared to an area average of 17.8 inches.

Pickerel Lake was chosen to serve as a control in the evaluation of a special regulation applied to Little Cascade Lake in 2003. Standards for success of the Little Cascade regulation were an increase in the number of larger fish in Little Cascade, or a stable number of large fish in Little Cascade if the number of large fish in Pickerel Lake declined. So far neither standard has been met. Assessment results in Little Cascade Lake have not shown a significant increase in the number of larger fish present (2012 assessment report). Stability in the number of large fish in Little Cascade Lake has not been accompanied by a decline in their numbers in Pickerel Lake.

Forage for northern pike was provided by yellow perch and white sucker. Yellow perch were relatively abundant in 2012; the gill net catch was the highest seen in this lake since 2003. From the lengths of fish taken, it appeared that the high catch may have been due mostly to a strong year class that produced high numbers of 5-6-in fish. Most of the yellow perch present would have been too small to have interested anglers. The white sucker gill net catch fell within the normal range for the lake class, but most of the white sucker collected were too large to have served as prey for any but the largest northern pike in the lake.

Are there any state parks near Pickerel Lake?