Casey Springs 
Brook Trout Catch and Release Area
Decorah Newspapers
Tuesday, May 29, 2018 11:02 AM
The 17-acre parcel near Decorah was sold to Winneshiek County Conservation by Jim and Wanda Sindelar and their family and contains a half-mile of Casey Springs trout stream.
Sindelar Wildlife Access is adjacent to the 256-acre Falcon Spring Wildlife Management Area maintained by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). It will be managed by Winneshiek County Conservation as a public fishing access.
“We are grateful to the Sindelar Family for their recognition of the importance and value of this property, proud to be able to continue their legacy of conservation, and excited to expand the local opportunities for public trout fishing,” said Barbara Schroeder, executive director of Winneshiek County Conservation.
In the past, Casey Springs required landowner permission to fish. It was only occasionally stocked with fingerling trout and was last stocked with brook trout in 2004 and with brown trout in 2008. In August of 2017, DNR biologists sampled less than one tenth of a mile of Casey Springs and recorded more than 125 brook and brown trout, with a few fish up to 16 inches.
“That means that Casey Springs has healthy, naturally reproducing populations of both brown and brook trout,” said DNR Fisheries Biologist Mike Siepker. “That’s rare even in Northeast Iowa with our abundance of cold-water streams.”
One of seven
Casey Springs is one of only seven streams in Iowa with restored populations of brook trout originally acquired from South Pine Creek, which contains the only known population of remnant native trout in Iowa. Only four of these streams were publically accessible prior to the creation of the Sindelar Wildlife Access, which now provides another opportunity for anglers to pursue native brook trout.
“We will be working to create a parking area in the future and will continually work on habitat improvements to benefit both fish and other wildlife. Though fishing is the primary attraction, the area will also be excellent for bird and other wildlife watching,” Schroeder said.
Funding for the purchase of the property was provided by a grant from the Fish Habitat Program of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources as well as donations from the Iowa Driftless Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the Mid-Missouri Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the North Bear Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the Iowa Coldwater Conservancy, the Hawkeye Fly Fishing Association and Upper Iowa Audubon.
For more information, contact Winneshiek County Conservation at 563-534-7145.