Be on the lookout for rainbow trout redds when you are wading.
Photo by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, courtesy Chris Strainer
When you’re out on the water, PLEASE be mindful of redds (trout spawning beds). You’ll find them in shallow, gravelly areas with a nice, steady current flowing over them. A redd looks like a shallow, scooped out bowl of cleaned gravel that stands out from the surrounding darker, weedier gravel. (See the photo above.) You may or may not see trout on the redds, but either way, just admire the trout’s innate desire to perpetuate the species and leave those areas alone. Whatever you do, do not walk through redds. Be careful where you wade.
