Kootenay Trout Hatchery 

	Kootenay Children's Fishing Pond and Nature Trail Our Pond is available for kids to try their luck at fishing.  Depending on the availability of tour guides, fishing equipment may be available for loan, by donation.
We encourage you to bring your own equipment with your kids. This is a CATCH and RELEASE pond, using single barbless hooks.  Bait or worms are acceptable.

Visitors Welcome

An extensive interpretative area includes aquariums, educational models and displays.
Bring the kids (of all ages!).

FREE guided tours available daily from 10:15 am to 3:30 pm  (until Labour Day Weekend- Sept. 3rd).

This is a great opportunity for School Groups and
the general public!  

Come and stop by the hatchery to discover (or re-discover!)
the joys of:

• Picnic in the shade of the Rockies while taking in the sights of the beautiful surroundings and abundant wildlife.
• Taking a nature walk with a tour guide to learn more about indigenous plants, birds and animals of the region.
• Letting the kids feed the trophy sized trout in the outside moat
• Getting an up-close-and-personal view of the trout and prehistoric white sturgeon in the aquaria
• Having a look at the western painted turtles in the turtle pond
• Getting a behind-the-scenes tour of the hatchery.

Note: the facility is wheelchair accessible and tour bus parking is available. 

Programs

Learn to Fish

This program includes instruction relating to:

• Fish ID & basic biology,
• Rods, reels & lines,
• tackle & accessories,
• knots & equipment set up,
• casting and retrieving,
• proper fish handling,
• freshwater fisshing regulations & information sources,
• AND of course.. WHERE, WHEN & HOW to catch fish!

This program concludes with a hands on experience fishing at our scenic new pond. The hatchery supplies students with their own rods, bait, lures, nets , and all other necessary equipment. We welcome and strongly encourage parent participation throughout the lesson. Please ensure that all participants are dressed for the weather of the day and that they bring enough food and drink, this program can be anywhere from 2 - 4 hours long and must be booked in advance.  To book a program please call (250) 429-3214 or email Visit.Kootenay@gofishbc.com.

We will be offering the Learn to Fish program 7 days a week throughout the summer. 

Find us

- 4522 Fenwick Road, Ft. Steele, BC, V0B 1N0  - Located: 32 km southeast of Cranbrook on Highway 3, 6 km north on Wardner/Fort Steele Road. - Hours of Operation: MON-FRI 8 am - 4 pm (MT)  - Tours Available: Spring/Summer 10:15am - 3:30pm  -Telephone: (250) 429-3214 - Fax: (250) 429-3202 - Email: Kootenay@gofishbc.com

Species raised

Rainbow trout, westslope cutthroat trout, white sturgeon, eastern brook trout and kokanee s

Photo by David Gluns for the UCWSRI

About Our Hatchery

The Kootenay Trout Hatchery went into production in 1965 and is responsible for stocking 130 to 150 lakes in the east and west Kootenay regions annually.  It also stocks some lakes in the Kamloops (Region 3) and Okanagan (Region 8) regions.  In addition, it provides fish to the Clearwater Trout Hatchery and Prince George holding facility for central and northern stockings in the province.   For a listing of lakes stocked, visit our Stocking Reports section.

Most recently, the hatchery has become a key component in white sturgeon recovery initiatives for both the trans-boundary Kootenay River population (in 1998) and the upper Columbia River population (in 2001).  The hatchery was expanded for the two sturgeon initiatives and currently has facilities to accommodate adult holding, spawning and juvenile rearing.  To learn more about the Kootenay and Columbia sturgeon programs, visit our White Sturgeon Conservation page.