| Brook Trout - Fair: A variety of insect hatches occurring. Use care not to alarm fish when approaching streams with clear water. |
| Brown Trout - Excellent: Recent rainfall making some streams off color and knocking terrestrial insects in water. This flush of fresh food excites Brown Trout. Fish near or around undercut banks. Try using streamers or spinners on larger waterbodies for some exciting action. |
| All stream stockings announced once a month minimum. Trout streams are in good condition. Long pants or waders protect legs from irritating yellow parsnip and nettles. Gnats and mosquitoes aggressive. |
| Rainbow Trout - Excellent: Weekly stocking continues on most streams. Use spinner baits, hair jigs, or hooks tipped with a small piece of worm, dough ball, or cheese floated through deeper water. Use bait if keeping fish. |
Public fishing access to lower Chihak Creek is available on the Howard County Conservation Board's Cleghorn Wildlife Area and on the Iowa DNR's Turkey River Wildlife Management Area. The rest of the stream is on private ground and requires landowner permission to fish and access. The stream has naturally reproducing wild Brown Trout and not stocked. 2019 data show 252 Brown Trout per mile with fish ranging in size from 2 to 13 inches.(2021)
In nearly all cases, Iowa fish are safe to eat. Cleaning and/or preparing the meal causes most of the problems regarding taste or color of fish. Like all living creatures, fish are susceptible to diseases, parasites, and other naturally occurring conditions in the water. If you suspect your fish is affected by any of these conditions, do not eat it. Consider eating smaller and younger fish which usually have lower levels of contaminants than larger ones. Most contaminants accumulate in larger, older fish. For additional information, check out our resources for eating and cooking Iowa caught fish.
To learn more about fish tissue monitoring, visit our Fish Tissue Monitoring page .
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