Students of U of W are so lucky to have a beautiful lake nearby. A nice stroll along the shore has been my favorite when visiting the campus. In summer, it is pretty active there with yachts and boats, and at the desk with some performance. In winter, it is calm and quiet, giving the best scenery when it comes with snow.
Mendota is a beautiful day-sailing destination and its pretty easy in/out at Gov. Nelson depending on the wind. Not so easy if there's a stiff southerly coming across the bay. But its a nice open lake with interesting shorelines.
This is an excellent lake for boating, whether by sail or by motor, or even by paddle. The fishing is good too, I understand. This is a scenic lake for just strolling along the shoreline.
There's the university rowing house & there are lots of people on & around the lake, boating, biking, roller-blading, strolling. lovely.
Nice large lake, plenty of room for skiing, etc (if the water is not too rough). Fantastic view of Madison and the university.
Watching the sun set along Lake Mendota is a treat, especially from great vantage points such as the Union Terrace, Observatory Drive, or Tenney Park. The lake itself, however, gets progressively more gross as the summer carries on with all sorts of algae and other things growing. Certain places, like the little beach on Picnic Point, can be nice most of the year. I'm not a boater or fisher, so no comment. I do enjoy the lakeshore path while bike riding. Let's clean this lake up, eh??
In the Madison area, this is a must. Make a day trip down to Lake Mendota, walk the path, go to the UW Madison Memorial Union. Many locations to stop and take in the views. Walk to Picnic Point and enjoy a calm walk. A gem for the UW campus and Madison.
The weather was beautiful. The water was clear and delightful. The lake is huge, so it wasn't crowded with boats. It was a lovely day to spend a summer day.
We recently took our grand kids tubing on the lake. They loved it. We took them on a weekday afternoon and the lake was not busy. We put the boat in at Governor Nelson State Park on the north side of the lake without any problems. There are several restaurants on the lake that are boat accessible. This is really a treat for Madison boaters. We usually boat on the Mississippi River and there are fewer boat assessable restaurants in the pool we are in than what is available in Madison. We ended the day by eating at the Nautigal Restaurant in Madison.
Nice deep lake. It is large enough to handle a lots of boaters and not be crowded. Lots of sail boats, fast boats, and the fishing is good too. Nice beach by picnic point with restrooms.