Green Valley State Park - Whole New Look

Introductions will most likely be necessary to reacquaint the frequent campers and anglers with the all new Green Valley State Park after the park and lake emerge from a 20-month-long facelift, later this spring.

The facelift included adding full hook-up sites, removing a number of campsites to increase the size of each site, redesigning all the camping pads, a new electrical system upgrading from 30 amps to 50 amps, and each site will have a new picnic tables and fire grills. The campground will have a new shower building installed this spring. New pit latrines were added at the campground, the cabins and the north picnic area. A third camping cabin was built.

Green Valley will also have a new playground that was donated in part, by the family of Greg Haley, who was the park manager when he passed away in January 2009. It was built by volunteers.

The park was connected to the City of Creston by a paved bike trail in 2009 that allows park visitors easy access to the amenities in town.

While the campground renovation was underway, the DNR took the opportunity to improve the quality of the lake.

The lake was lowered 12 feet in late summer 2008 and the fishery was renovated to remove carp and yellow bass. The spillway was reconstructed; the fishery was rebuilt with bluegills, largemouth bass and channel catfish. A few adult crappies from ponds in the watershed will serve as the source for all future crappies for the lake. While the lake was down, the DNR added fish habitat to bring fish close to shore anglers.

The dry dredge project began in February that will deepen the north ends of the two arms and other areas along shore. Digging out the sediment will also remove the nutrients trapped in the sediment and improve water quality. In fact, the water is already noticeably clearer.

The dredging is scheduled to be completed by July 1 then the spillway will be closed to refill the lake. Once the lake refills, there should not be a delay when anglers should catch keeper sized fish - 2 pound catfish and 7 to 7-1/2 inch bluegills.

"Those fish will have been growing in the lake for nearly two years," said Gary Sobotka, area fisheries biologist for Green Valley. "Everything is setting up to be a nice fishery."

Green Valley will not be part of the DNR campsites reservation system for the foreseeable future because once the renovation is complete, the park will be remapped and all the sites photographed and other information on the park updated for the online system so camping will be allowed on a first come, first served basis.

Green Valley State Park has been one of the ten busiest parks in the state and will likely resume its place among the most popular places to fish, camp and play. It also serves as a launching point for Three Mile Lake and Twelve Mile Lake.