Nimbus Fish Hatchery closes visitor areas due to budget cuts

Budget cuts will force the closure of public areas at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery starting July 1, state wildlife officials announced Friday. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said the hatchery's visitor center, parking lot and fish ponds will close indefinitely due to funding reductions. The facility along the American River in Gold River has served as a popular educational destination for decades. "We are working to reopen these facilities as soon as possible and regret the inconvenience," the department said in a social media post Friday. The hatchery will continue its core mission of raising and releasing Chinook salmon and steelhead trout into the American River system. However, the public will lose access to viewing areas that have drawn school groups and fishing enthusiasts, particularly during fall spawning season. Constructed in 1955 below Nimbus Dam, the hatchery was built to compensate for fish habitat destroyed by the Folsom-Nimbus dam project. The dams blocked salmon and steelhead from reaching about 100 miles of upstream spawning areas they had used for generations. The facility operates through a partnership between the state wildlife department, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. While California manages daily operations, the Bureau of Reclamation provides funding as part of environmental mitigation requirements for the dam projects. State officials did not specify when public access might resume, saying only that reopening depends on securing adequate funding. Updates on the hatchery's status are available at wildlife.ca.gov.