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Fish and Game begin stocking rainbow trout in southern Idaho

Posted at 5:45 PM, Oct 05, 2022
and last updated 2022-10-05 19:45:39-04

TWIN FALLS, Idaho — Along with cooler fall weather comes perfect opportunities to go fishing in Idaho.

Idaho Fish and Game (IDFG) is now stocking rainbow trout in many of southern Idaho's water ways. Stocking began on the Oct. 3 and will continue till the Oct. 28. More than 35,000 rainbow trout will enter into lakes, springs, and ponds.

“Three quarters of the trout in Idaho are hatchery produced so if you catch a trout in Idaho there's a three out of four chance it was produced at one of these facilities in our state,” said Chris Jeszke, hatchery manager at the Hagerman fish hatchery.

Idaho is the No. 1 producer of trout in the country. This is impart to the conditions and natural water springs that Idaho has access to. The snake river aquifer provides a consistent living temperature for trout, making them easy to grow.

RELATED: Idaho Fish & Game begins marking season for steelhead hatcheries

“World class water if you want to call it that. It’s just perfect for growing fish and we take advantage of that opportunity,” said Terry Thompson, regional communications manager for IDFG.

Fun facts about hatcheries

The easy access to natural water that stays close to 58 degrees is why Idaho is one of the largest trout producers in the U.S.

"There's no heating there's no cooling, and it’s all gravity fed so we don’t have to rely on pumps if there's a power outage,” said Jeszke.

For more information on trout stocking and locations, click here.