June kicked off a summer long celebration of the 150th anniversary of the National Fish Hatchery System. As part of our celebration, we’ve created a series of road trip blogs that crisscross the country highlighting national fish hatcheries that are more than 100 years old!
Join us each week for Road Trip Tuesday as we take you on the Great American Hatchery Road Trip!
For this week’s stop, we’re at Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery in Georgia.
Established in 1899, Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery (not be to confused with the other Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery in Oregon!) consists of 56 acres with 39 ponds. The role of the hatchery is recovery and restoration of imperiled aquatic and terrestrial species. Examples of these species include alligator gar, gopher frogs, gopher tortoises, Gulf Coast striped bass, sicklefin redhorse, and others.
The National Fish Hatchery System has been improving recreational fishing and restoring aquatic species since 1872 (uhhhh, yeah that makes them 150 years old!) and yet, lots of folks might not even know that their grounds are often open to the public and entry is FREE! The wonderful thing about fish hatcheries is that they offer something for everyone in your group…no more disgruntled sighs from the backseat!
