LAKE STOREY STATUS REPORT SUMMARY
CHANNEL CATFISH: LAKE STOREY This 133 acre watershed impoundment, located on the northwest edge of Galesburg, has a tradition of good channel catfish fishing during the summer through fall period. The lake is estimated to have a very high overall fishing pressure in the range of 400 to 800 hours/acre. Annual channel catfish harvest is estimated at 1,250 to 2,500 fish with an average size of 1.5 pounds.
The channel catfish population at Lake Storey is not a naturally produced
fishery. Annual stocking efforts by the IDNR have totaled 50 non-vulnerable
sized (8 inch) fish/acre. Current 2005 catfish data shows an excellent
population of 1 to 5 pound fish with individuals ranging up to 11 pounds.
Channel catfish fishing success at Lake Storey in 2006 has the potential
of being very good.
LARGEMOUTH BASS: LAKE STOREY - This 133 acre public co-op lake
located in Knox County at the northwest edge of Galesburg, is a fertile
watershed impoundment having a high carrying capacity of fish. The lake
is estimated to have a very high overall annual fishing pressure in the
range of 400 to 800 man hours/acre.
Historical data for the largemouth bass population over a 30 year period (1974 - 2003) at Lake Storey has revealed a cycle of high quality followed by a period (2-4 years) of low quality. A largemouth bass fishery possessing high quality in its structural indices will always be followed by a period of intense fishing pressure and harvest (overfishing) and then followed by a period of low quality and low fishing pressure. This phenomenon may be called the “boom-bust-build cycle”.
To decrease the effects of this phenomenon, a 12 to 15 inch slot limit has been in effect since 1986. The current 2003 fish population data at Lake Storey shows a slight increase in the supply of 15 inch or larger bass over the preceding year. The 2004 fishing season will offer bass anglers a good supply of 1.25 to 2.0 pound fish for catch and release and limited numbers of fish larger than 3.0 pounds.
MUSKIE: LAKE STOREY - This 133 acre public lake located
near Galesburg in Knox County has been home to muskie since 1976. A fall
water level drawdown of 6 feet for the purpose of predator-prey balance
is an annual fish management practice. The lake is heavily fished with
an estimated annual pressure of 400 to 800 hours/acre for all fish species.
Both muskie and tiger muskie have been stocked on an infrequent basis over the past 24 years. The first stocking of tiger muskie in 1976 resulted in a 20 pound 13 ounce state record in August, 1982. The largest muskie caught to date from Lake Storey was a 27 pound 8 ounce fish caught in May 1993. The Mississippi Valley Chapter of Muskies, Inc and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources have cooperated in the stocking of 1,680 Leech Lake Strain muskie ( 6 to 16 inch) during the 1993 through 2003 period. Lake Storey has the potential of producing a 30 pound plus natural muskie during the 2004 fishing season. A 42 inch minimum length limit is enforced on muskie at Lake Storey.
