Taylor County’s Lake of Three Fires north of Bedford is the focal point for the state park of the same name, and, according to Iowa DNR (2), “was dedicated in 1935 and is named after a group of Native Americans from the Potawatomi tribe who once inhabited the area known as the ‘Fire Nation’.” There were a number of WPA and CCC projects in Iowa and elsewhere during the 1930s that focused on drinking water supply, lake construction, and natural resource enhancement in parks.
By the early 2000s, the volume of Lake of Three Fires had shrunk 40% and the maximum depth halved because of sedimentation. Iowa DNR and Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) worked with watershed landowners to reduce sediment transport to the lake. The lake was drained in 2004 and about 400,000 cubic yards of sediment were removed. The lake was refilled and stocked with bluegill, catfish, and largemouth bass. Prior to this, the Secchi depth had never been greater than 18 inches. In the few years following restoration, lake clarity sometimes reached 6 feet, nearly unheard of for any Iowa lake this side of West Okoboji, which is kept clear by its enormous depth.
Then something happened. ...
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