Hodstradt Lake

Hodstradt Lake earns an A — water clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a all rate among the best monitored waters in Oneida County. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

Trophically, Hodstradt Lake reads as oligotrophic — nutrient-poor, clear, and ecologically more sensitive to disturbance than richer lakes. The lake bottoms out at 36 ft — a moderate depth that supports a warm-water fishery without the year-round cold refuge a deeper basin provides. Hodstradt Lake covers 119 acres alongside partial shoreline records — a mid-sized water that supports a working fishery without being so large that conditions diverge between basins. Among the 134 graded lakes in Oneida County, Hodstradt Lake ranks 21 — in the top quartile locally.

Hodstradt Lake has at least one documented invasive species (Chinese Mystery Snail), so boaters and anglers should observe clean-drain-dry steps when leaving the lake. The fishery includes walleye alongside the lake's other 4 documented species — a notable draw for Wisconsin anglers. A documented public access point at Hodstradt Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.