University of Wisconsin–Madison

Behind the Scenes at Hasler Open House 2026

By Nalina Cherr- Hasler Lab officially opened its doors at two in the afternoon on June 26th, but people were already lining up at half past one. Many people followed directions written in sidewalk chalk to the lab. This year’s Open House hosted more than three hundred visitors, who enjoyed boat tours of Lake Mendota, scoops of Babcock ice cream, and a behind the scenes look at how we study lakes.

The day of the Open House started for me as many days begin; by putting on a pair of waders and following a couple of scientists into the depths. This time, however, was unusual. First of all, I had unfortunately chosen to wear flip flops and was thus forced to wear the waders with no socks.

Secondly, the creek we stepped into was the creek that passes by the gym I sneak off to between classes (the Bakke has a beautiful look-out over Willow Creek). Thirdly, the insects we were collecting weren’t for research, but as examples for visitors to explore and identify.

A person in waders holding a net is looking for insects in a stream.
Intern Katie Fink looks for insects in Willow Creek. Photo: Nalina Cherr
A person holds an oxygen bubbler in a tank of bullhead catfish. Another tank in the background holds a bluegill.
Intern Dylan Fritz adjusts the oxygen system on a tank of bullheads. A bluegill looms in a neighboring tank. Photo: Nalina Cherr

Between the road overhead and the construction zone, I’ve seen cleaner creeks, but we still managed to find a couple of large dragonfly larvae and a mayfly.

When we returned to Hasler Lab (and I was finally able to remove the waders off my poor sockless feet), buckets of fish were being unloaded at the dock. I was startled to see a large bluegill and an even larger walleye.

The tanks were full, the aquatic plants were labeled, the ice cream was stocked, the boat tickets were ready, and the doors were officially open.

Here are a few candid highlights of the event:

A person in a life jacket holds up a secchi disk onboard a boat.
Helen Schlimm, Hasler Outreach Coordinator, demonstrates a Secchi disk aboard a boat tour.
Photo: Carrie Kissman
A person stands behind a table full of bins of aquatic plants and is showing them to visitors at the Center for Limnology Open House.
 Nalina Cherr, SciComm Intern, shows aquatic plants to visitors.
Photo: Helen Schlimm
People are scooping ice cream for visitors at the Center for Limnology Open House.
A young scientist investigates the solid-liquid state of a sample of Babcock ice cream.
Photo: Nalina Cherr
People are interacting with a watershed model to learn how pollutants move across a landscape at the Center for Limnology Open House.
Visitors interact with a watershed model that demonstrates the flow of pollutants across a landscape into waterbodies.
Photo: Nalina Cherr
A kid points to a fish in a tank at the Center for Limnology Open House.
Another burgeoning researcher points out the distinctive glassy eyes of a Sander vitreus, commonly known as “walleye.”
Photo: Nalina Cherr

Here is my personal takeaway from the Open House:

Though visitors treated me like an expert, I must confess that I’m a newcomer to limnology. Lake ecology isn’t something I’d thought particularly hard about, despite living right between Mendota and Monona for the past three years. But this is a science that is easy to fall into.

It’s easy to live between two lakes and to think of them as landscaping. But landscapes shape us. Lakes are centers of human civilizations. They change our weather and reflect our climate. 

Limnology is a science for anyone who’s ever lived between two lakes. It’s a science that thrives on interdisciplinary collaboration. Scientists here work to answer the questions of recreational boaters, tribal members, landowners, and so many others for whom lakes are important. 

I didn’t used to think about limnology, but I must confess I have fallen in. Not because I’m a researcher with a yen to study fish, but because I too live near lakes. Because once I was invited inside, I realized this is my science too. 

That’s why outreach events like this open house are so important, especially for limnology. Limnology is a science that many people don’t even know exists. I know I didn’t until about three years ago when I walked past Hasler as a freshman. Inviting people inside is how we invite people to care. About this science, and also about the lakes they live among.

I will now get off my soap box.

People walk down a dock towards a boat on a lake at the Center for Limnology Open House.
Visitors at the Hasler Lab Open House on Lake Mendota. Photo: Taylor Wolfram

If you joined us this year, we hope you enjoyed a cold treat, filling out your field notes booklet, and getting a behind the scenes look at how researchers at the Center for Limnology study lakes and more. If you weren’t able to make it, we hope to see you at the Trout Lake Station Open House on July 31st from 1-5 PM, or next year!