Green water

[snowplow]

For a couple weeks now a local lake that is typically crystal clear is completely green. Like green microscopic particles in the water. You can see clouds of them in the water where it is thicker in some areas than others. This is in Western Washington. What is this? It doesn't really seem like algae to me? 

 

It really really cuts visibility down. Would you look at this? Just like any other muddy water or dark day and just throw something dark? Or would you throw something contrasting like red??

[Fishingmickey]

Sounds like a Algae bloom.

[MediumMouthBass]

Sounds like one of my local (favorite) lakes last year, it was usually clear for a few feet down and had great fishing. They had some home owners complain about lily pads and a very small amount of grass so they sprayed something on the lake. For months after it was a greenish tinted water with green pieces floating. I would get hundreds of whatever it was on the paddles and have to keep trying to wash it off. Completely destroyed the fishing on the lake too, no matter what species i was going for.

 

But potentially could also be an algae bloom. And if so i wouldnt be fishing there until it went away, algae blooms can have some affects on humans/dogs in certain cases.

[12poundbass]

There’s at least one lake around here that does that every year shortly after ice out. It’s either from heavy rains or the bottom turning over. Either way the fishing sucks when this particular lake is green.

[snowplow]

The weird thing about it is it's like it's not really there. Me and my buddy were wondering if it was actually something in the water or the water itself. You can find no particles in the water that I can see and nothing floating on top. It seems like the water is full of little Little green flakes but then you stick your hand in and it's just water. Some places are thicker than others. It literally looks like there's clouds of it in the water of varying densities. Last year this Lake had 10 plus feet of visibility every time I was there. It's almost like liquid metal flake paint. Where the metal flakes aren't really something you can separate out from the paint, they're just a sparkly part of the paint. Anyway, the fishing sucks and I'm just trying to figure out if it's me or if this has more to do with it and what the hell to do next lol.

 

[MN Fisher]

Definitely sounds like microscopic algae suspended in the water....got access to a microscope?

[12poundbass]

4 hours ago, snowplow said:

The weird thing about it is it's like it's not really there. Me and my buddy were wondering if it was actually something in the water or the water itself. You can find no particles in the water that I can see and nothing floating on top. It seems like the water is full of little Little green flakes but then you stick your hand in and it's just water. Some places are thicker than others. It literally looks like there's clouds of it in the water of varying densities. Last year this Lake had 10 plus feet of visibility every time I was there. It's almost like liquid metal flake paint. Where the metal flakes aren't really something you can separate out from the paint, they're just a sparkly part of the paint. Anyway, the fishing sucks and I'm just trying to figure out if it's me or if this has more to do with it and what the hell to do next lol.

 

exactly how the lake I referenced is

[Swest18x]

That happened to a normally clear lake near me last year. 40 degree water temp, first trip low vis green water, a couple weeks later clear again. I agree with some kind of algae bloom.