Welcome the Rainbow Trout Back to Green Valley Lake in Arizona
OutdoorHub 10.19.11
Payson, AZ — Payson residents and visitors can welcome back the rainbow trout to beautiful Green Valley Park on Thursday afternoon, Oct. 20.
“Fall is a wonderful time to visit the rim country, see the colors, and relax and fish along the grassy shorelines of this popular urban fishery just a mile west of Highway 87 on Main Street,” says Eric Swanson, Urban Fishing Program manager.
More than 750 Colorado-grown rainbow trout will arrive to kick off a trout season that features 11- to 14-inch fish delivered every two weeks.
The fish stocking program at Green Valley is different from all other Urban Fishing Program waters. Rainbow trout are the only species stocked by the department during an eight-month season that starts in mid October and continues through early May.
No other fish species are stocked at Green Valley, however good populations of bass, crappie, catfish and sunfish can be found in this productive lake ecosystem.
Trout can be caught on small spinners and spoons, by fly fishermen using nymphs or wet flies, and by baits such as scented dough baits, worms or salmon eggs.
Swanson says that to catch more trout use lighter line in the 2- to 6-pound range, smaller hooks and a minimal amount of weight. Limits on trout are four per day for licensed anglers and two trout for children under age 14.
