News

2025_LTL_header-2-1b

June 14 @ 9:00 am 2:00 pm

Join Clean Lakes Alliance at Loop the Lake on Saturday, June 14th!

2025_LTL_header-2-1b

Event details

Registration includes

Each registration includes fun and educational stops along the route, a free food cart item, and a free beverage, including Michelob Ultra, Ultra Zero, or Ultra Seltzer (21+).

Loop the Lake collector’s t-shirts

All riders registered at the $48 price point will receive a Loop the Lake collector’s shirt.

2025 LTL front of shirt

Stops along the route

  • Olbrich Park – 8:40 to 8:50 a.m. – barre3 will lead a stretching session for participants
  • San Damiano – Take a scenic detour to Monona Parks’ newest lakefront property, now a public park rich in history. Enjoy peaceful views, grab a drink at the water station, or cheer on Loop the Lake riders from this beautiful spot.
  • Schluter Park – Stop by for a sweet slice of watermelon, courtesy of the Monona Police Department
  • Winnequah Park – Education station with Aldo Leopold Nature Center – learn about small aquatic critters in our lakes
  • Grand Crossing Park – Enjoy festive music, yard games, and kids’ activities
  • Off Broadway Drafthouse – get a free root beer float and water, or purchase a cold beverage
  • Olin Park (join us in the wedge between the park and the bike path) – visit with Madison LakeWay and enjoy a water station
  • BB Clark Beach Park – enjoy water and snacks
  • Hudson Park – learn about the history and significance of this sacred site from expert guides from Ho-Chunk Nation and UW-Madison in this special effigy mound educational stop
  • Olbrich Park – enjoy a free food cart item from one of Greater Madison’s favorite food carts, and enjoy a a complimentary beverage – choose from Michelob Ultra, Ultra Zero, or Ultra Seltzer (21+), or a non-alcoholic option at the Clean Lakes Alliance tent

Food carts at Olbrich Park

Greater Madison’s favorite food carts will return to Olbrich Park during Loop the Lake! Each registration includes one food cart item at Olbrich Park. Additional food will be available for purchase.

  • Ben’s Soft Pretzels
  • Bob’s BBQ Emporium
  • David’s Jamaican Cuisine
  • Donut NV
  • El Gran Taco Gato
  • Forage Kitchen
  • Jakarta Cafe
  • Momma Meg’s Ice Cream
  • Naan Stop Fusion
  • Papa John’s
  • State Street Brats
  • Thailand in a Truck

Access for all

With help from MESBA, Clean Lakes Alliance is dedicated to making the 2025 Loop the Lake more accessible to all community members. Make financial assistance requests through this Google Form.

Stay and ride

Whether you are traveling to the area for the weekend or want to plan a “staycation,” our friends at Discover Monona have got you covered. See the list below for variety of options to spend the weekend in our community! 

For more information visit discovermonona.com

Thank you, partners!

Loop the Lake, presented by Lake Ridge Bank, is an annual event aimed at promoting the protection and preservation of Madison lakes. The event is produced along with platinum host Discover Monona, in partnership with Madison LakeWay, Monona East Side Business Alliance (MESBA), and San Damiano Monona, and in conjunction with the City of Madison and the City of Monona. All proceeds support Clean Lakes Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving and protecting the lakes, rivers, and wetlands in the Yahara Watershed.

2025_LTL_sponsor_footer

Learn more about Loop the Lake.

(608) 255-1000

View Organizer Website

3527 Atwood Ave.
Madison, WI 53714 United States
+ Google Map
6082664711

LakeForecast water quality monitoring in 2024

Clean Lakes Alliance’s LakeForecast water quality monitoring program completed its 12th season in 2024. This program is entirely volunteer-implemented, with over 100 trained monitors assessing water quality conditions from nearshore and offshore locations across all five Yahara lakes (Mendota, Monona, Wingra, Waubesa, and Kegonsa). From Memorial Day through Labor Day, volunteers recorded water clarity, air and water temperature, waterfowl presence, the extent of floating plant debris, and the severity of green algae and cyanobacteria at public beaches, lakeside parks, and private piers. Submitted data can be seen in real-time on Lakeforecast.org or our free app, allowing the public to stay up to date on current lake conditions.

Read More

Aquatic plants being harvested in Lake Monona (photo courtesy Dane County)

An interview with a Dane County Aquatic Plant Harvester Operator

If you’ve spent time around any of Greater Madison’s lakes, you’ve probably seen these large machines in action. Unofficially and incorrectly known as “weed cutters,” the machines and their operators play a vital role in keeping our lakes open to everyone. The proper name for the machine is aquatic plant harvester, because they’re not just cutting weeds, they’re harvesting and removing vegetation from our lakes. 

So how do they work? What are they doing? Who is out there driving them? Clean Lakes Alliance visited Lake Monona on a beautiful August day to ride along on one of Dane County’s aquatic plant harvesters driven by Donn Kidd to get some answers.

Aquatic plants being harvested in Lake Monona
Riding along with Donn Kidd on one of Dane County’s aquatic plant harvesters on Lake Monona in 2023, photo courtesy Dane County
Read More

2024 LTL Sponsor Header

June 15, 2024 @ 9:00 am 2:00 pm

2024 Benefit Bike Ride

Support clean, healthy lakes with Clean Lakes Alliance’s 12th Annual Loop the Lake Bike Ride, presented by Lake Ridge Bank. It’s an at-your-own-pace bike ride around Lake Monona on Saturday, June 15th that raises funds to protect and preserve Greater Madison’s lakes. Make a day of it while you enjoy entertaining and educational activities at many parks along the route.

Event details

Cyclists of all ages and abilities navigate the scenic 13.8-mile loop around Lake Monona.
🚲 Saturday, June 15th
🚲 Starting & ending at Olbrich Park (3527 Atwood Avenue, Madison)
🚲 Course open 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. (optional group start at 9 a.m.)
🚲 $45 per in-person rider (through June 13th), kids 10 and under ride free with a paid adult
🚲 Get a group to ride – purchase 6 adult registrations for the group rate of $200
🚲 $50 per in-person rider (same-day registration on June 15th), kids 10 and under ride free with a paid adult

Registration includes

🚲 Fun and educational stops (see information below)
🚲 Super soft t-shirt, compliments of Lands’ End
🚲 Food cart item
🚲 Free beer or seltzer, courtesy of Bell’s Brewery (21+)

Loop the Lake is more than a bike ride – it’s an opportunity for our community to connect with our lakes! Event proceeds will support Clean Lakes Alliance’s work to protect and improve our lakes through on-the-ground projects, educational programs, and water quality monitoring.

You can also choose to ride, walk, run, or paddle from anywhere, at any time! Register for the virtual option for $55 and we’ll mail your shirt!

2024 LTL Sponsor Header

Stops along the route

  • Nearly a dozen professional kiters from throughout the Wisconsin area are gathering at Olbrich Park with beautiful kites of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Colorable kites will also be given to the first 100 kids who arrive at Loop the Lake to inspire fun, spark creativity, and introduce youth to the joy of kiting.
  • Pre-ride stretching session at Olbrich Park from 8:40 a.m. – 8:50 a.m. with barre3
  • Schluter Park – Get a sweet treat from Monona Police
  • Winnequah Park – Education station with Aldo Leopold Nature Center – learn about small aquatic critters in our lakes
  • Grand Crossing Park – hear the salsa band, Orquesta SalSoul
  • Off Broadway Drafthouse – get a free root beer float and water, or purchase a cold beverage
  • Olin Park (join us in the wedge between the park and the bike path) – visit with Friends of Nolen Waterfront and enjoy a water station
  • BB Clark Beach Park – enjoy water and snacks
  • Hudson Park – learn about the history and significance of this sacred site from expert guides from Ho-Chunk Nation and UW-Madison in this special effigy mound educational stop
  • Olbrich Park – enjoy a free food cart item from one of Greater Madison’s favorite food carts and a beer or seltzer (21+)

Thank you sponsors!

2024_LTL_sponsor_footer
$45 – $55

(608) 255-1000

View Organizer Website

3527 Atwood Ave.
Madison, WI 53714 United States
+ Google Map
6082664711

Image 3 - Offshore monitor training

LakeForecast water quality monitoring in 2023

Clean Lakes Alliance’s LakeForecast water quality monitoring program completed its 11th season in 2023. This program is entirely volunteer implemented, with 90 trained monitors assessing water quality conditions from nearshore and offshore locations across all five Yahara lakes (Mendota, Monona, Wingra, Waubesa, and Kegonsa). From Memorial Day through Labor Day, volunteers recorded water clarity, air and water temperature, waterfowl presence, extent of floating plant debris, and the severity of green algae and cyanobacteria at public beaches, lakeside parks, and private piers. Submitted data can be seen in real-time on lakeforecast.org or our free app allowing the general public to stay up to date on current lake conditions.

Read More

Photo courtesy Dane County Land & Water Resources Department
Lake Wingra and Henry Vilas Park
Lake Wingra and Henry Vilas Park

Henry Vilas Park (Lake Wingra)

Henry Vilas Park is one of Madison’s oldest lakeside parks, and provides a gathering place along Lake Wingra for swimming, fishing, and even ice skating when the lagoon freezes over. The park was created from a 1904 donation from Wisconsin’s U.S. Senator, William Freeman Vilas (1840-1908), to the Madison Park and Pleasure Drive Association, an organization committed to the development of parks and scenic drives in the Madison area in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Vilas also served as U.S. Postmaster General and Secretary of the Department of the Interior under President Grover Cleveland. Henry Vilas Park is named in memory of William’s son who died in childhood.

Read More

Fishing along Monona Bay

Out-of-town anglers drawn to downtown Madison lakes

Spend time walking along Lake Monona between Law Park and Brittingham Park, and you’ll notice anglers tossing lines from plenty of places. Unfortunately, there is a lack of accessible shoreline fishing locations. Folks fishing have to contend with hazards like the wall at the Monona Terrace or the railroad tracks…which are actually illegal to use for fishing. Still, the challenges of fishing on Lake Monona do not seem to stop diehard anglers from spending time doing what they love.

Read More

2022 Clean Boats, Clean Waters

Overview

In 2022, Clean Lakes Alliance received a Wisconsin DNR Surface Water Grant to participate in the Clean Boats, Clean Waters (CBCW) program. CBCW is a state-wide aquatic invasive species (AIS) prevention program. The program increases awareness and education to boaters, anglers, and general lake users on best practices to prevent the further spread of AIS at our local boat landings. 

Read More

Nine days of Frozen Assets

We had so much fun throughout the nine days of Frozen Assets 2023 and we hope you did too! More than 8,000 lake enthusiasts from near and far joined us for science demonstrations, musical performances, ice skating, food and drinks, ice sculpture carving, a chance to try new winter activities, face painting, networking, a chance to run or walk in the only 5K on a frozen lake in North America, and more! We THANK YOU for supporting lakes Mendota, Monona, Wingra, Waubesa, and Kegonsa!

Read More

Lake enthusiasts from near and far joined us at Frozen Assets 2023 for science demonstrations, music, a 5K on a frozen lake, and more!

Read More