Golden Trout

 

Paul Katsus is a Texas native who has fished for freshwater trout throughout the United States. Paul Katsus suggests the Golden Trout be placed on the Trout Fisherman’s ultimate bucket list of trout to chase. The fish is an excellent sport fish but is also said to be the best tasting of any Trout, although slightly oiler.

The Golden Trout, which is also known as the California Golden Trout, is a Rainbow Trout subspecies. This California Trout species (Golden Trout) originated from the Golden Trout Creek (which is a tributary of the Kern River), Volcano Creek (a tributary to Golden Trout Creek), and the South Fork Kern River. There are two other California Rainbow Trout subspecies that are closely related to the California Golden Trout. One of these trout sub-species is the Little Kern Golden Trout in the Little Kern River basin and the other is the Kern River Rainbow Trout which are found in the Kern River system. The California Golden Trout, Little Kern Golden Trout and the Kern River Trout are known as the Golden Trout complex of the sub-species. There is another rainbow trout subspecies known as the Redband Trout, although the Golden Trout was perhaps the best known of the California Trout subspecies. Today, the Catalog of Fishes lists the Golden Trout as an independent species of trout rather than a subspecies.

The Golden Trout can be easily be identified by the golden flanks with red, horizontal bands along the lateral lines on each side. There are also dark, vertical, oval marks on each side. In their native California habitat, mature trout range from 6 to 12 inches, with those over 12 inches considered large. However, in area lakes where they have been transplanted, Golden Trout have caught up to 11 pounds. The Wyoming Game & Fish State record Golden Trout measured 28” and weighed 11.25 pounds. The monster fish was caught in Cook Lake, Wyoming in 2012.

The Golden Trout is most commonly found at elevations from 6,890 feet to 10,000 feet above sea level and is a native fish only to California’s southern Sierra Nevada Mountains. Their preferred water temperature is 58 to 62 °F but they can tolerate temperatures in degraded streams on the Kern Plateau as high as 70 °F, if those waters cool during the night. Fortunately for Trout enthusiasts, the Golden Trout has been transplanted to the Canadian province of Alberta, and the states where transplanting has taken place include Arizona, Wyoming, Washington, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, and Oregon. Paul Katsus and many other trout fishermen, who love the sport of trout fishing, are proud to add the Golden Trout among their favorite Trout species.