Newfound Lake

How big is Newfound Lake?

How deep is Newfound Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Newfound Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Newfound Lake?

Newfound Lake is a 643 acre lake located 20 miles northeast of Ely. There are five accesses, two of which are water routes, and three portages. The two water routes consist of a connection to Moose Lake on the southwest end and a connection to Sucker Lake on the northeast end. The three portages consist of a 30 rod portage to Found Lake on the northwest side, a 20 rod portage to Skull Lake on the south east side, and a 35 rod portage to Splash Lake in the northeast corner. Although Newfound Lake is located in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) within the Superior National Forest, outboard motors up to 25 hp are allowed. There are 13 U.S. Forest Service maintained campsites and visitors need to have appropriate permits, issued by the U.S. Forest Service, to visit the lake. The lake has a maximum depth of 45 feet and at the time of the survey, light green colored water.

Newfound was thermally stratified on August 20, 2018 with a surface temperature of 73 F and a bottom temperature of 47 F. Oxygen levels were adequate for gamefish to a depth of 26 feet. Newfound Lake receives water from Moose Lake to the southwest and flows out to Sucker Lake to the northeast. The dam at the outlet of Sucker Lake sets the elevation for all three lakes in the Moose Chain (Moose, Newfound, and Sucker). Lake bottom substrates along the shoreline are mostly ledge rock, rubble, and gravel. Aquatic vegetation is very sparse.

There is no stocking currently being done on Newfound Lake.

The overall gillnet catch rate for all fish combined was 44.7 fish/net which was higher than average for the lake. Fish species sampled were cisco, walleye, northern pike, white sucker, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, rock bass, and lake whitefish.

The 2018 gill nets sampled 72 walleye for a catch rate of 8 fish/net. This catch rate was better than average compared to past surveys on Newfound and very good compared to other similar lakes. The catch rate was also quite good when compared to other lakes in the Tower area. Lengths ranged from 7 to 30 inches with an average of nearly 18 inches, which was higher than normal compared to past surveys on the lake. The average weight was very impressive at nearly 3 pounds. Growth was extremely fast with a 4 year old walleye averaging nearly 17 inches. Fish were aged up to 19 years old with good representation from most year classes.

The northern pike gill net catch rate of 3.7 fish/net was better than average for Newfound and very good compared to other similar lakes. Lengths ranged from 16 to nearly 42 inches with an average of 28 inches. These sizes were very good compared to past surveys on Newfound Lake. The average weight was an impressive 5.5 pounds which was quite high compared to other similar lakes throughout the state.

The cisco gillnet catch rate was 27.2 fish/net which was above average for Newfound and quite high when compared to other cisco lakes in the area. Lengths ranged from 7 to 17 inches with an average of 10 inches.

Eight smallmouth bass were sampled in gill nets for a catch rate of 0.9 fish/net which was above average compared to other similar lakes and past surveys on Newfound. Sizes ranged from 8 to 15 inches with an average just over 11 inches.

Lake whitefish, yellow perch, white sucker, and rock bass were also sampled in gill nets. Their catch rates and sizes were similar to past surveys.

Rusty crayfish are a non-native invasive species that were first sampled in 1989 in Newfound Lake. They were likely first introduced to the Moose Chain of Lakes in anglers' bait buckets. In 2018, the rusty crayfish catch rate was 51.8/net. This catch rate is similar to past surveys.

What is the average air temp for Newfound Lake?