Take the Kids to the Rainbow Trout Farm

Teaching kids to trout fish can be challenging due to the sometimes difficulty in catching trout. But lucky for Arizonan's, we have one of the best rainbow trout farms in the country! It's located in Sedona off Highway 89A between Slide Rock State Park and Sedona's tourist's district in the heart of Oak Creek Canyon.

First opened in the 1950's, the Rainbow Trout Farm is open year-round, seven days a week and is the perfect place to introduce kids to trout fishing. If you just want to come in and look around, admission is FREE! But if you wish to fish, you will have to pay some fees.

Kids are pretty much guaranteed success when fishing at a trout farm. So not only will get to experience the joy of catching a nice trout, they'll also get to learn how the pole feels with a trout at the other end of it.

The Fishing equipment and bait is provided for you at the Rainbow Trout Farm. Don't bring your own - it's not allowed! You don't even need a fishing license! The fishing fee is only $1 per person - but be forewarned, there is NO CATCH AND RELEASE! You'll pay $8-$12 for every fish you catch depending on size. The average trout size is 11 to 12 inches. So you might want to keep a close eye on the kids! The trout farm makes their own dough bait which is used for fishing and it consists of fish food mixed with flour and water. They even sell it if you'd like to try it in your local trout waters.

In addition to being able to see rainbow trout up close, the trout farm also has BBQ and picnic tables for folks to enjoy. In order for the maximum number of folks to enjoy the trout farm, people are asked to limit their stay to 2 hours.

Folks at the at the trout farm will even clean your fish for you at a cost of 50 cents per fish (no filleting). Once your fish is cleaned, you can cook it on the BBQ grills at the park or pack it on ice and take it home (the trout farm does sell ice for this purpose).

Another option is to take your trout to the Heartland Cafe in Sedona and have them cook it for you. Then you and the family can either enjoy it there or take the cooked trout home. This is a great option for folks visiting and camping in Oak Creek Canyon.

For more information about the Rainbow Trout Farm, call (928) 282-5799.