Waterville Hatchery holding public tours Wednesday

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is inviting the public to tour the Waterville State Fish Hatchery.

The open house will be Wednesday, April 24 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the hatchery for the public to learn about the importance of the investment in constructing a new hatchery.

Visitors will be able to tour the facility and see incubating fish eggs, young fish of various sizes, adult fish, and displays with fisheries sampling gear, nets, and work boats.  Guests will also be able to hear about the process of raising fish while they enjoy refreshments.

Opened in 1954, the Waterville hatchery is the state’s largest cool-water facility.  It incubates and raises various sizes of walleye, northern pike, and muskellunge for the state’s fish stocking program.

“Touring the hatchery is a memorable experience. We’re looking forward to chatting about what we do and showing why we are so excited to be modernizing our operations,” said Craig Soupir, Waterville area fisheries supervisor.

The hatchery is located 2 miles west of Waterville off of Le Sueur County Road 14 at 50317 Fish Hatchery Road.