Rifle Falls has a state fish hatchery that raises trout

Near the waterfalls at Rifle Falls sits something many visitors do not expect: a working fish hatchery run by the state. It uses the cold, steady spring water in this area to raise trout.

The Rifle Falls Fish Hatchery is a cold-water hatchery operated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. It raises young trout of several kinds, including rainbow, brook, brown, and cutthroat. Some are grown to small fingerling size and others to catchable size, then trucked out to stock rivers, lakes, and reservoirs around the region.

This is part of a system most anglers never see. The fish in a lot of Colorado’s popular fishing spots did not all hatch there on their own. They were raised at places like this and released to keep the fishing healthy and to support native and stocked species alike. The cold spring water that made this a good site for a hatchery is the same kind of resource that makes the Western Slope good trout country.

For someone moving here who likes to fish, it is worth knowing the chain behind the sport: state hatcheries, stocking schedules, and the licenses that help pay for it. The hatchery near Rifle is one link in that chain.

For details on the hatchery, the species it raises, and visiting, see Colorado Parks and Wildlife.