California Trout

California Trout
AbbreviationCalTrout
Formation1971 (1971)
FounderRichard May
Type501(c)(3) non-profit
Legal statusNonprofit organization
HeadquartersSan Francisco, California
Region
California
MethodsHabitat restoration, advocacy
Executive director
Curtis Knight
Staff60[1] (2023)
Volunteers75[1] (2023)
Websitecaltrout.org

California Trout (CalTrout) is a San Francisco-based 501(c)(3) conservation nonprofit founded in 1971. Established by angler Richard May after a split from Trout Unlimited, the group focuses on restoring and protecting wild fisheries across California. Its work combines habitat restoration, policy advocacy, and regional initiatives in areas such as the North Coast, Central Valley, and Sierra Nevada headwaters. Documented projects include participation in dam removal on the Klamath River, a fish-passage bridge replacement on the Santa Margarita River within the Santa Margarita River Trail Preserve, and tidal-wetland restoration in the Eel River estuary.

History

California Trout was established in 1971 by angler and conservationist Richard May after splitting from Trout Unlimited to form an independent organization focused on California’s fisheries.[2][3]

Programs

California Trout organizes its work around statewide initiatives and regional offices. The group maintains offices in the North Coast, Central Valley, Sierra Headwaters, Bay Area, Mount Shasta–Klamath, South Coast, and Mount Lassen regions.[4]

CalTrout identifies five key initiatives: Protect the Best, Reconnect Habitat, Integrate Fish and Working Lands, Steward Source Water Areas, and Restore Estuaries.[5] Selected projects include:

Reconnect Habitat

  • Klamath River (North Coast): CalTrout was a partner in the removal of dams on the Klamath River, completed in 2024 in what has been described as the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. The multi-year effort also involved tribal nations, federal agencies, and conservation groups such as American Rivers.[6]
  • Santa Margarita River (South Coast): In San Diego County, CalTrout has led the Sandia Creek Drive Bridge Replacement Project on the Santa Margarita River, located within the Santa Margarita River Trail Preserve, which is owned and managed by The Wildlands Conservancy. The project, undertaken with partners including NOAA Fisheries and San Diego County, is designed to remove a long-standing barrier and reopen 12 miles of upstream habitat for endangered southern steelhead.[7][8][9]

Restore Estuaries

  • Eel River Estuary (North Coast): CalTrout is a partner in the Cannibal Island Restoration Project in Humboldt County, a 795-acre effort to reconnect tidal wetlands in the Eel River estuary. The project, approved in 2025 with support from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the State Coastal Conservancy, is designed to restore habitat for salmon, steelhead, and other native species while improving flood resilience.[10][11][12]

Advocacy

In addition to restoration projects, CalTrout has been active in policy advocacy. In 2018, it joined Restore Hetch Hetchy in proposing limited public boating access on the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir for the first time, arguing that San Francisco had long benefitted from the water system but the American public had not.[13]

Organization

The organization is headquartered in San Francisco. As of 2023 filings, it reported about 60 staff and 75 volunteers.[1] It has maintained regional offices and a full-time presence in Sacramento.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c IRS form 990 for 2023
  2. ^ Heaney, James (1989-06-07). "Trout Group's Split Reflects Wider Division". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  3. ^ "Fly Fisherman's 2022 Conservationist of the Year: Richard May". Fly Fisherman. 2022-02-03. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  4. ^ "Our Regions". California Trout. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  5. ^ "Key Initiatives". California Trout. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  6. ^ "After the Klamath River dams came down, salmon came back". High Country News. 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  7. ^ "The $18M Project to Protect Endangered Trout". San Diego Magazine. 2023-09-06. Retrieved 2025-08-29.
  8. ^ "New Bridge on Santa Margarita River Will Enhance Important Steelhead Migration Corridor". California Trout. 2024-01-31. Retrieved 2025-08-29.
  9. ^ "Over $13 Million Recommended for Funding CalTrout-Led Fish Passage Projects". California Trout / NOAA Fisheries. 2022-12-16. Retrieved 2025-08-29.
  10. ^ "County approves permit for Cannibal Island Restoration Project". Redheaded Blackbelt. 2025-04-14. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  11. ^ "795-acre Cannibal Island restoration project moves forward". KRCR. 2025-04-15. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  12. ^ "Cannibal Island Restoration Project CEQA Documents". California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Retrieved 2025-08-30.
  13. ^ "A historic bid for limited boating at Hetch Hetchy Reservoir". San Francisco Chronicle. 2019-09-28. Retrieved 2019-10-01.

Further reading

  • Tight Lines – A History of California Trout. California Trout, 2016. Online version
  • California Trout 50th Anniversary Timeline. California Trout, 2021. Online version
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