Great East Lake has an area of 1768 acres, with a maximum depth of 102 feet. The surface temperature is 80 degrees F., while the temperature 97 feet below the surface is 51 degrees F.
There are 15 varieties of fish in the lake; brook trout, brown trout, lake trout, rainbow trout, chain pickerel, crappie, large mouth bass, small mouth bass, smelt, yellow perch, white perch, sun fish, white sucker, hornpout, and minnows.
The lake has a large volume of cold, well-oxygenated water and rocky shorelines, and is well suited for lake trout. Lake trout (touge), introduced in 1956, have become established and have grown very well over the years. Unlike salmon and most other trout, lake trout do not need tributary streams for spawning, but select rocky shoals and broadcast their eggs over the rubble bottom. Great East Lake lacks suitable salmon and trout spawning tributaries.
Over the last several years, the State of New Hampshire has had control of the stocking of fish in Great East Lake and has been stocking rainbow trout into the lake. In 2003 they stocked 1150 yearling+ rainbows trout. In 2005 the stocking was done in three phases, 1000 on April 18, 1000 on April 26 and 1000 on June 28. The New Hampshire Fish and Game, who are in charge of stocking the lake, will be planting some smelt eggs next spring to increase the smelt population, which are bait fish for the larger fish.
In past years, the State of Maine has stocked brook trout.
For more info, contact BOB CHOOLJIAN
14 pound Trout caught by Conrad Eleckna on June 26th, 2004 in the Narrows. -Nancy Callen
2006 Loon Report- July 13
Erin O'Brian, the Loon Preservation Committee biologist assigned to Great East visited here on July 13th for the second time this summer. Twelve adult loons and three chicks were observed. There have been as many as 6 loon pairs on the lake this year with 3 pairs nesting. 2 pairs have been seen together in the second basin and another pair in the narrows. None of these have nested.
The Scribner pair has 2 healthy chicks born the end of June. We saw one chick diving with a parent this week. The Loon Island pair didn't use the floating nest this year but did successfully hatch one chick on July 13th. We saw the chick in the water, then on the parents back, then it disappeared under a wing. Erin visited both nest sites and gathered egg fragments which will be tested at the LPC.
As of July 13th the Copp brook pair is still on the nest.
A pair of loons were seen on the Scribner a week before the ice was out on the main part of the lake. This photo shows the South Cove loons on the lake shortly before iceout. - April 22,2007 - Linda Schier
