Fresh fishIN’

IOWA CITY - Eastern Iowa has a new hot spot for trout fishing.

On Friday, the Department of Natural Resources dumped 1,800 rainbow trout into Sand Lake at the Terry Trueblood Recreation Area, just south of downtown Iowa City.

“These fish are not going to be able to survive year-round in here,” said DNR Biologist Paul Sleeper. “We're putting them in basically as a put and take, we want the fish to be caught.”

The trout, which weigh an average of 1.8 pounds each, were delivered to the lake by tanker truck. They came directly from the Manchester Fish Hatchery, about 75 miles north of Iowa City.

“I usually go up to Northeast Iowa to do some trout fishing,” said Joe Mooney, a fisherman from Lone Tree. “This is only ten minutes away, so I thought I'd give it a try.”

The stocking of the lake is part of the DNR's Urban Trout Stocking program, which promotes year-round fishing in lakes and pounds near populated areas.

“The (trout) will be providing angling all winter long,” said Sleeper, who expects the new fish to bring more ice fishermen to Johnson County. “Typically the trout will hang in schools, so once you find them, you can really get into them, even through the ice.”

Iowa DNR regulations require anglers to have a valid fishing license and to pay a trout fee before going after trout. A daily limit has been set at five trout per person.

This is the first time the DNR has stocked an Iowa City lake with trout.

Sand Lake at the Terry Trueblood Recreation Area is located off Sand Road in Iowa City, near the intersection of Winter Eagle Road SE, South of Highway 6.