 Over a century ago, it was recognized that conservation measures were necessary to maintain good fishing in our public waters. Fishing has always been one of America's leading forms of outdoor recreation. The primary responsibility of the Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery is to raise rainbow trout which will help preserve this tradition for present as well as future generations. Construction of a dam, regardless of its type, alters the environment within a river. The first and most obvious change takes place when a reservoir fills, but many changes may also take place below the dam. Some of them might be subtle, and others,
like those in the Cumberland tailwaters, might be quite drastic. Wolf Creek Dam produces a large, deep reservoir in which the water stratifies into temperature layers during the summer and fall months. The water released into the Cumberland River comes from a deep, cool layer. It caused a loss of the original warm water fish habitat and replaced it with the
present cold tailwater. Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery was constructed in 1975. This is one of the most recently constructed hatcheries in the federal system. This station annually produces approximately 1,000,000 trout weighing 230,000
pounds. In cooperation with State fish and wildlife agencies, fish are stocked in public waters in the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. The majority of the fish are stocked into waters controlled by the federal government. The Hatchery's water supply comes from Lake Cumberland at a depth ranging from
25-100 feet below the water surface. The water temperatures will range from 40-65 degrees depending on the time of year. The water gravity flows through the hatchery at rates up to 10,000 gallons per minute. Visitors are welcome to tour the hatchery and to fish in the creek below the hatchery which is handicapped accessible. Special group tours can be arranged
with the Hatchery Manager. Year round camping is also available near the hatchery at the Corps of Engineers, Kendall Park. For Additional Information Contact: Hatchery Manager Wolf Creek National Fish Hatchery 50 Kendall Road Jamestown, KY 42629 (270) 343-3797 | 