AUSTIN, Texas — Free trout fishing access is available on the Guadalupe River below Canyon Lake until March 17 at two sites leased by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The cliffs access site is located just past the third bridge crossing on River Road. This access site offers parking and wade-fishing access via a marked path to the river. There is no bank fishing access at this site. Wade fishing is advised only at river flows below 500 cubic feet per second. The second access site, Camp Huaco Springs, is located just below the first bridge crossing on river road. This site offers approximately a mile of bank access, as well as good wade fishing opportunities. In order for the daily access fee to be waived at this site, anglers must park in the designated parking area and walk to the river. TPWD stocks trout at both these sites as part of its annual winter trout stocking program, which provides economical access to fishing at more than 100 water bodies around the state. Camp Huaco Springs receives about 25 percent of all the trout stocked by the department on the Guadalupe River. River road runs along the Guadalupe River from New Braunfels to Sattler. Trout stockings on the Guadalupe River are slated for Jan. 21 and Feb. 11. Additional Guadalupe River trout stocking sites include the fishing pier directly below Canyon Dam (free access), Whitewater Sports on Highway 306 (fee charged) and the bridge crossing in Sattler (fee charged by Rio Raft company). Anglers should consult the 2004-05 TPWD Outdoor Annual for specific trout fishing regulations on the Guadalupe River. For the first time in many years, Texas anglers do not need a special trout fishing stamp in order to fish, however a freshwater fishing package is required. Youth ages 16 and younger and anyone fishing from the bank in state parks are exempt from the fishing package requirement. TPWD has been stocking rainbow trout in small urban lakes, state park lakes and popular river tailraces each winter since the 1970s, providing Texans a simple and economical opportunity to go fishing.
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