Welcome to Chalco Hills
Chalco Hills brochure Page 1
Chalco Hills brochure Page 2 (includes map)
CHALCO ARBORETUM BROCHURE
Chalco Hills Recreation Area, in southwest Omaha, is the area's premier recreation area. At Chalco Hills, you can try your luck with fishing; relax at a picnic site; bike, hike or jog more than 7 miles of trails. The area is managed by the Papio-Missouri River NRD. Operation Hours: 6 a.m. - 10 p.m. seven days a week.
Featured at Chalco Hills is Wehrspann Lake, a 245-acre lake considered one of Nebraska's premier fishing spots thanks to angler's support of catch and release. Wehrspann Lake is one of five Papio Creek Watershed flood control reservoirs surrounding Omaha. The most common fish in the lake include Largemouth Bass, Catfish, Walleye, Sunfish, Crappie. The lake is stocked by the NE Game and Parks Commission.
ONE-STOP SERVICE CENTER - Featured at this recreation area is the Natural Resources Center, the NRD's headquarters. Located in our building are several USDA Agencies: The Natural Resources Conservation Service, Rural Development, and the Farm Services Agency, as well as a field office for the US Army Corps of Engineers, NE Department of Environmental Quality and the Civil Air Patrol. The District works closely with these agencies for effective management of our natural resources, and we are nationally known for this co-location of resources offices.
For more information, contact Park Superintendent Jerry Herbster at
402-444-6222 or
jherbster@papionrd.org
NATURE WATCH: SIDELINE: Nebraska State Flora & Fauna:
| At Chalco Hills you'll see the: | State Flower | Goldenrod |
| State Tree | Cottonwood tree | |
| State Bird | Western Meadowlark | |
| State Grass | Little Bluestem | |
| State mammal | Whitetail deer | |
| State insect | Honeybee |
Wehrspann Lake
Located at Chalco Hills Recreation Area, Wehrspann Lake is a 250-acre lake surrounded by 940 acres of trees and grasses. Recreational opportunities include fishing, hiking, biking, picnicking and nature studying.
Wehrspann Lake at Chalco Hills Recreation Area is located near Highway 50 and Interstate 80 in Sarpy County. The area is managed by the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District. The lake, a flood control reservoir built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, offers flood control to the West Branch Papio Creek Watershed. Designed and managed to be an excellent fishery, Wehrspann Lake opened to the public in August, 1988.
Fishing Pressure
Southeast Nebraska, including the Omaha-metropolitan area, contains only five percent of the state's waters. A Nebraska Game and Parks Commission survey conducted in 1990 on Wehrspann Lake shows that 14,514 anglers used the lake during a 77-day period an average of four or five hours.
In comparison, each acre of Lake McConaughy in western Nebraska was fished an average of only two times during that same time period. Those figures at Wehrspann Lake mean that special measures need to be taken to save the fishery.
Bass Limit
Wehrspann Lake anglers are asked to follow a size limit on bass. The statewide bag limit only allows one bass 21-inches or longer. This 21" limit is enforced to allow bass to reproduce at least once before harvesting, to create a trophy fishery and to control panfish.
Balancing the panfish population (bluegill, crappie, sunfish, etc.) in relation to other species found in the lake prevents the stunting of panfish caused by overpopulation. A four-pound, 21" bass will consume three times the weight of panfish as a 12" bass. It's all just a matter of balance.
Note: 10" size minimum on Crappie
In an effort to protect the fishery, the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District encourages the practice of catch and release at Wehrspann Lake.
The practice of Catch and Release is quite simple - Put Them Back Alive.
1. Be sure to wet hands before handling or measuring fish.
2. Release immediately.
- If the line is deeply hooked in the throat or stomach, cut the line, as the hook will work itself out.
For More Information Contact: jherbster@papionrd.org