The results are in, and apparently Colorado fishermen prefer their trout with a side of trout. And a trout chaser. So say the 1,404 respondents out of 3,000 licensed anglers asked to take part in the 2012 Colorado Angler Survey commissioned by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Among residents and nonresidents who replied, the four most commonly targeted species of fish were rainbow trout (23 percent), brown trout (17 percent), cutthroat trout (12 percent) and lake trout (11 percent). And while it might seem like those cold-water fish were selected because they're the ones anglers have the greatest opportunity to fish, the survey compiled by CPW human dimensions specialist Stacy Lischka indicates that those who fish in Colorado really can't get enough trout.
Forty-six percent of resident anglers surveyed wanted additional fishing opportunities for rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout. Nonresidents favored brown, cutthroat and lake trout, with 64 percent desiring additional opportunities to fish for those species.
One of the coolest things about fishing in Colorado is the opportunity to catch nearly 30 species of game fish. The vast majority of them are stocked by CPW, with rainbow, cutthroat and brown trout making up most of the agency's hatchery fish. Out of 17 CPW hatcheries, 13 focus almost entirely on trout.
