Colorado National Fish Hatcheries
Hotchkiss National Fish Hatchery
8077 Hatchery Road
Hotchkiss, CO 81419
Phone: (970) 872-3170
Fax: (970) 872-3643
Overview
Hotchkiss National Fish Hatchery is located about 20 miles east of Delta, CO near the town of Hotchkiss and was established in 1967 as part of the Colorado River Storage Project Act. Located on 58 acres along the banks of the North Fork of the Gunnison River, the hatchery's cold, clean water supply comes from the adjacent Tommy Dowell Spring. Hotchkiss NFH facilities include 24 inside nursery tanks, 40 concrete raceways, and 2 earthen ponds use for effluent treatment and sedimentation. Currently the hatchery produces trout to fill needs for federal water developments projects throughout Western Colorado and Northern New Mexico.
Visit Us
- Large Scale Aquarium: No
- Visitor Center: Yes
- Open Weekends: Yes
- Tours: Prearranged
- Education Programs: No
- Trails: None
- Wildlife Viewing: Yes
- Special Events: No
- Picnic Area: Yes
- Public Fishing Access: Yes
- Public Hunting Access: No
Leadville National Fish Hatchery
2846 Highway 300
Leadville, CO 80461
Phone: (719) 486-0189
Fax: (719) 486-3343
Overview
Leadville National Fish Hatchery, established in 1889, is the second oldest Federally operated fish hatchery in existence today. Located on 3,072 acres near the city of Leadville, the hatchery's subalpine forest surroundings with its cold, clean water supply and nearby source of native cutthroat trout populations provide the ideal spot for trout production. Originally, the hatchery produced trout that were distributed over the entire Rocky Mountain region. Waters which originally held only native cutthroat trout, or none at all, were stocked with additional trout. The Black Hills area and parts of Wyoming that held no native trout at all also were first stocked from this hatchery.
Visit Us
- Large Scale Aquarium: No
- Visitor Center: Yes
- Open Weekends: Yes
- Tours: Self-Guided & Prearranged
- Education Programs: No
- Trails: Interpretive, Hiking, Walking, Mountain Biking, Cross-Country Skiing
- Wildlife Viewing: Yes
- Special Events: Yes
- Picnic Area: Yes
- Public Fishing Access: Yes
- Public Hunting Access: Yes