Pond Boss
Posted By: George Haddaway Lake trout or mackinaw in a pond - 09/15/20 06:31 PM
Hello,

I have a 4 acre pond up at 9000 feet here in Colorado. It's about 25-30 feet deep at the deepest point. I want to know if I can stock a small amount of lake trout. I know they get big. The pond has lots of forage, and I can stock more forage. I have no budget. I think they are a really cool species and would love to have a few of them in there. Does anyone know a good stocking rate for them? There is a nearby lake full of them but its a big lake, about 100 acres probably.

George
Posted By: CityDad Re: Lake trout or mackinaw in a pond - 09/15/20 08:52 PM
Google says 300/acre is maximum density.

$100 POUNDS of trout per acre is recomended again per google.

Maybe try ladder stocking a few hundred a year for a few years?
Posted By: wbuffetjr Re: Lake trout or mackinaw in a pond - 09/15/20 10:46 PM
I was told Lake Trout would not work. They like VERY deep water and spend a large portion of the summer very deep. May be worth a try though. You would be the very first person that I have seen on the forum to try them. If they don't work out you could try Splake. They are a Brook Trout X Lake Trout hybrid and might be a nice compromise. I can confirm they do well in small bodies of water.

Have you measured your DO levels in the 20' to 30' range??
Posted By: George Haddaway Re: Lake trout or mackinaw in a pond - 09/15/20 11:29 PM
No. I have not measured DO. I will do next time I'm there. Also, we are installing solar aeration soon.
Posted By: wbuffetjr Re: Lake trout or mackinaw in a pond - 09/16/20 01:46 AM
Sounds awesome! How are you doing the solar aeration? Are you buying one of the commercially available rigs or doing something custom?


Keep us updated as you go. Everyone loves pics! I am happy to have another trout guy around!
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