ALAMOSA, Colo — Anglers fishing at the Sand Creek drainage in Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve can keep as many fish as they can catch for the next few weeks.
Bag limits have been temporarily removed as Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) prepares for a native cutthroat trout restoration project in that area.
The goal is to reintroduce Rio Grande cutthroat trout to the Upper Sand Creek Lake, Lower Sand Creek Lake and Sand Creek, located high on the west flank of the Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range.
The fish are native to the waters but their population has declined over the last 100 years due to water diversions, land-use changes and competition from non-native trout, according to CPW.
CPW said they want to start stocking Rio Grande cutthroats in the fall of 2020.
First, they will treat the lakes and the creek to remove the current fish in late August. There are rainbow, brook and non-native cutthroat trout there now, according to CPW.
Anglers with a valid Colorado fishing license are allowed to catch and keep as many of the fish as they would like before that happens.
Bag limits will be removed until August 25.
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