The Yahara lakes are the Madison-area's dominant natural feature. They affect our daily lives, yet we may not know them well. This Wisconsin State Journal series examines the history, impact and health of our lakes.
(23) updates to this series since
GIANTS AMONG US
The Yahara chain of lakes dominates our landscape. For the past 12,000 years, almost as soon as the last glacier withdrew, people have been dr…
The Yahara lakes are a largely unknown world within our world. Running right through the middle of our lives, they affect us in ways so big and so familiar that that are easy to forget.
The Yahara lakes help quench the human need for contact with nature.
The state christened the Yahara River’s four main lakes with undulating three-syllable names in 1855.
Tamara Thomsen is a marine archaeologist with the Wisconsin Historical Society and has documented hundreds of dives in the Yahara lakes. She a…
Madison's lakes have a long and storied history. Here's a look back at how they have changed over the years.
Wisconsin State Journal photographers capture the stunning beauty of the Yahara River chain.
Images from lakes Mendota, Monona, Waubesa, Kegonsa and Wingra, the jewels in the Yahara River chain of lakes.
Discover underwater oddities such as cars, boats, equipment and other objects beneath the surface of the Yahara lakes.
Why is the water here? The unhurried Yahara River you see today follows much the same path of a very different watercourse that flowed long before the last glacier came and went.
Lt. Gerald Stull's crash is also remembered.
One route travels above ground, the other below.
Lake levels have been rising.
You'll find cars, boats, ice shanties and much more at the bottom of the Yahara lakes.
Native peoples and European settlers have been drawn to the lakes.
It only recently was subject to academic study.
Many were destroyed by white settlers.
White settlers found the lakes attractive, just as did earlier inhabitants.
We asked Wisconsin State Journal readers for their stories and photos about the Yahara lakes. We received a tremendous response. It’s clear th…
Each of us has our own relationship to the lakes, an affection that endures through good times and bad.
The beauty, health and culture of Madison's four lake has inspired timeless art in all mediums.
“If Wisconsin is going to have swimmable, fishable, drinkable water in 30 years, we need better farm policies,” said one researcher. “What we’re doing is not working.”
Madison, Dane County, farmers and others are fighting back against phosphorous and invasive carp. Will their efforts be enough?
Lake levels are rising, and the area may be on the cusp of flooding unlike anything in the last 100 years, according to one expert.
Our everyday actions can have an impact on the lakes we love. Here are some simple things you can do to help take care of them.
Want to help improve and protect the Madison-area's cherished lakes? Several groups offer a way to get involved, including:
