Lake Wilson Hawaii

 lake wilson aka wahiawa reservoir was created in 1905-06 for irrigation purposes. mainly for the wailua sugar plantation and dole pineapple. with a water capacity of 3 billion gallons at full pool,19miles of shoreline, and 350-400 acres of surface area. the lake is the largest freshwater body on the island.  it was made be damming the convergence of the north and south forks of kaukonahua stream. with earthen and rock dam which is roughly 83ft high from the floor of the valley below, not sea level. one of the main misconceptions is that the usgs gauge is registering the height of the water level in the lake. but when its reporting 82ft the lake depth is closer to 56ft at its deepest, and i have sonored 65ft in areas nearer the dam. there is one public park and boat ramp located in wahiawa town proper. the hawaii state freshwater park. it is run by DLNR or dept of land and natural resources and their officers, all 3 of them allocated to the north shore. do make their presence known from time to time. checking on vehicles  and regulations being followed. the ramp and lake itself are the property of DAR or division of aquatic resources. confused yet? we anglers are hahaha never know who's in charge anymore these days. the damn and the lake were part of  a trust that has very recently dissolved, and hence dole pineapple ran the lake and controlled its resources under that trust. another player in the confusing who's in charge of what. the lake is old and most of the cover now consists of lay downs along the bank and grass along the rim when the waters high. structure is the same as on any lake with points and steep bluffs,humps, and contour changes. much of the old stream channel has long ago silted in and no longer is definable in most places of the lake. most banks drop away rather quick and shallow water areas are quite limited. shoreline access is abundant, especially during periods of low water. check the gauge at the usgs link below. around 70ft it starts to get very accessible around the perimeter. but of course a boat does allow many more options. do to the koloko damn disaster on kaui in 2006 the state and dole have decided a good water level for the lake would be at 65ft. a bit low by most of us boaters standards. the ramp becomes quite long and tricky and north and south fork become nearly unfishable. at 55ft the ramp becomes unusable and above the water line. anything below 62ft is quite tricky when launching as there may only be 2-3ft of water at the end of the ramp. most areas of the lake are a soft red mud and heavy rains or runoff can quickly turn the lake orange. there are some harder types of structure but again limited.there are several islands and many many points and coves to fish. as small as the lake is it would be quite difficult to fish it all in one day thoroughly. a height of about 75-72ft is perfect to get the mix of grass ,lay downs and deeper structure for good fishing, at least in my opinion. an entry permit is needed by state regulations and all persons must have a PFD with them to utilize the lake. a freshwater license is needed to fish and is available at most sporting good stores , satellite city halls and even online at the hawaii DLNR website. price varys but its between 5-15 dollars depending on resident or visitor status, actually a very good deal considering its good for a year for residents and 30 days for visitors. the entry permit can be had at any sporting good store and most satellite city halls. often the DLNR rangers won't check for the entry permit just the license.surrounding wahiawa town, the lake is ringed by homes and condos. 2 bridges pass over it on each side of the town. the north fork ends in a forest reserve and the south for in a military reservation. there are supposedly fishing boundaries but again enforcement is lax at best. turn the corners into either fork above the bridges and its like a whole different place, quiet green, relaxing. what better way to spend a day!