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For those who like a challenge, here are a few you can take on:
California Heritage Trout Challenge － catch six different trout native to California in their historic drainages. The species are the coastal, Lahontan, and Paiute cutthroat trout; the coastal, Eagle Lake, and Kern River rainbow trout, the McCloud, Goose Lake, and Warner Lakes redband trout; and the California and Little Kern golden trout. Catch all for a master certificate! CDFW has a nice angler's guide for their challenge. My article, Hunting California's Native Trout, tells the story of my chase for these beauties.
Nevada Native Fish-Slam － catch all six salmonid species native to Nevada in Nevada. The species are the bull trout, the Lahontan, Bonneville, and Yellowstone cutthroat trout, the redband trout,, and the mountain whitefish. My article, Nevada Trout Hunt, chronicles my eastern Nevada expedition to catch these species.
Western Native Trout Challenge －multiple challenges from 6 species over 4 states to 18 species over 12 states!
Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming have their own challenges.
My friend Jan Nemec showing off his first Bonneville cutthroat trout. Caught in the Snake Range (White Pine county, Nevada).
How to identify native and wild trout? Checkout this streamside guide produced by FlyFishingtheSierra.com and WildTroutStreams.com.
What is the difference between a native trout and a wild trout? A wild trout is one which has spent its entire life in the fishery. A native trout is one in a water where they existed before human influences. For instance, a Lahontan cutthroat trout caught in the Truckee River would be regarded as a native fish regardless if it was raised in a hatchery or was naturally produced in the fishery. If naturally produced in the fishery, it would be a wild and native trout. Brook trout are non-native to our waters and may or may not be wild. The tiger trout found in local waters is certainly neither wild nor native.
Additional Reading
Cutthroat trout by Kurt Zeilenga
Fish Species of the Eastern Sierra, Hunting California's Native Trout and Nevada Trout Hunt by Kurt Zeilenga
Native Trout Fly Fishing (nativetroutflyfishing.com) by Gary Marston
This article was authored by Kurt Zeilenga. Suggestions on how to improve this article may be sent to info@ztrout.org.
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