Education Class:
Chasing native California trout in the Heritage Trout Challenge
Qualifying Trout
This Club developed session is to prepare Club members for scheduling and completing the California Heritage Trout Challenge.
To qualify for the Challenge, six different native trout must be caught within their historic range. The historic range, for the purpose of the Challenge, includes the trout’s native distribution in California, prior to human influence (pre-19th century), and all waters that feed into this watershed.
For example, catching a Lahontan Cutthroat Trout in Heenan Lake (Alpine County) qualifies for the Challenge. Although historically fishless, the lake outlet flows into the East Fork Carson River, where Lahontan Cutthroat Trout were once the only trout to inhabit this system. It is within their historic and native range.
Conversely, native species have been stocked in waters outside their native range to provide additional sport fishing opportunities. California Golden Trout can now be caught in many high-elevation streams and lakes across the Sierra Nevada; however, only those from the South Fork Kern River or Golden Trout Creek drainages qualify as a heritage species for the Challenge.
These three subspecies of Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii) and eight forms of Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) are your targets to complete the Challenge:
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Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii)
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Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
Class Curriculum:
Session will focus on explaining the Heritage Trout Challenge in California and its objectives and benefits for the fly fishing community. Special discussions include:
- What it takes to qualify, and State of California awards
- How to target the first six fish of the eleven for qualification
- How to determine with CDFW that the watershed you are fishing is qualified
- Using the web to determine where to fish in the qualifying waters.
- How to minimize the effort and travel to accomplish the challenge on the initial six native fish. Building a "targeted" approach toward accomplishment.
- A suggested itinerary to complete the first six qualifying fish in a year (although the program has no embedded time frames for qualification)
- Identifying each of your qualifying fish to ensure compliance and what is required for submission of your fish for the Challenge.
- Suggested tackle, flies, and approaches to be successful.
Registration and Costs:
Cash price: The cost is $50 for TVFF members. Non-member and Guest cost is $95 (includes an annual membership to TVFF).
You may pay by check or cash directly to the Club Treasurer within two weeks of registration. If you do pay cash you will be put into "Pending Registration" until your payment is received within the two weeks. Late payments will require you to register once again if there is space still available.
Credit Card price: The cost is $51.50 for TVFF members (includes 3% credit card surcharge.) Non-member and Guest cost is $97.85 (includes an annual membership to TVFF plus the 3% credit card surcharge).
Contacts:
Fishmeister/Instructor: Rob Farris, (925)286-5502, RFFarris@comcast.net
