Spednic Lake - Fish and History

Fish and History

Sport fishing on the lake, as well as on others in the watershed, is a major source of economic activity in the region. The three primary fisheries are for smallmouth bass, landlocked salmon, and white perch. Other fish species in the lake of potential interest to fishermen include brown bullhead (locally known as hornpout), burbot (locally known as cusk), chain pickerel, lake whitefish, pumpkinseed, rainbow smelt, and yellow perch. Bait and other fish species in the lake include American eel, common shiner, creek chub, fallfish, golden shiner, landlocked alewives, ninespine stickleback, pearl dace, and white sucker.

The lake is renowned for a smallmouth bass fishery. The bass had been introduced into the watershed in the 1800s and became firmly established on their own. The lake was noted for its exceptional fishery in several outdoor magazines of national publication over the years. In the 1980s this fishery largely collapsed, for reasons that are debated, but are most likely the combined effect of rebounding alewife populations following a downstream fishway modification and large lake water level drawdowns. Simultaneous changes in anadromous fish access and the water management regime, plus a temporary closure to bass fishing, have allowed it to largely rebound and be reopened for fishing, though the number of large old trophy fish remains low enough that the fishery is viewed as still recovering.

There is also a mixed native and stocked landlocked salmon fishery in select portions of the lake, including the Palfrey Lake arm. Those interested in fishing for salmon are advised to hire a local guide. The landlocked salmon population has suffered since landlocked alewives were illegally introduced in 1997, probably from the Great Lakes.

Archaeological evidence from roughly 2,000 B.C. shows that American shad and anadromous alewife were passing through the lake and being caught at Mud Lake Falls on the main inlet to the lake. As this falls is judged impassible to alewives, this species was spawning in the lake. Due to the bass fishery collapse, the fishway over the Vanceboro dam was modified in 1988 to prevent alewife access while continuing to allow salmon access. Legislative battles in 2001 and 2008 were about restoring alewife access below the Vanceboro dam, not about restoring them to Spednic Lake, but the history of fisheries in Spednic Lake was a large driver of the discussion, and more than a third of the alewife habitat in the St. Croix watershed is in or above Spednic Lake.

In 1861, draft dodgers from the American Civil War, founded a settlement known as the Musquash settlement overlooking the southeastern end of the lake on Skaddle ridge. It thrived through 1871, and dwindled thereafter. It is now an archaeological site and a small village known as Pemberton Ridge.