Rainbow trout are being stocked in the Colorado River at Willow Beach in Lake Mead National Recreation Area/NPS

For the first time in three years, Willow Beach National Fish Hatchery will release 1,000 rainbow trout into the Colorado River near Willow Beach Marina at Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Arizona every Friday, starting February 3.

A new pump and conveyance system were installed to deliver cold water to the federal fisheries facility, providing for proper trout growth. The stocked fish will be around 12 inches long. This weekly stocking schedule will continue year-round.

“It gives me no small delight to see rainbow trout come back into production at Willow Beach National Fish Hatchery,” said Dr. Benjamin Tuggle, regional director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Southwest Region. “Many concerned folks put their shoulder to the wheel to see this through — to design and build a new water conveyance system and jumpstart trout production with fish from our state partners. The hatchery once again serves the angling public.”

At Willow Beach in Black Canyon, anglers will find an accessible fishing pier just downstream from the hatchery that is open 24 hours a day, along with a fish-cleaning station. The marina store sells fishing supplies and bait.

Along with trout, anglers may also catch striped bass, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, catfish, walleye, and crappie from the Willow Beach area.

The first batches of rainbow trout to be stocked were secured by a partnership with the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The hatchery has also started raising rainbow trout from the egg stage.

The hatchery, built in 1959, is located 12 miles downstream of Hoover Dam on the Arizona side of the Colorado River within Lake Mead National Recreation Area. It is one of 70 other such facilities in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Fish Hatchery System.