We enjoyed visiting this really neat, fun, educational, & free experience in a lovely nature area. We found ample parking in the lot on a Sunday morning. Park at the far end from the lot entrance to be situated closer to the Visitor Center. The Visitor Center is small, but clean, organized, & packed with lots of facts & information. Some areas offered hands-on experiences. They also had coloring sheets for kids. Giant fish heads offer a listening experience teaching about the Chinook Salmon & Steelhead Trout. We enjoyed wandering around. Restrooms are available & were maintained. Just watch out for some spiders on the ceiling above. We went out to the hatchery early enough to get to scoop up some free fish food by the gate with available containers. It ran out while we were still there. It was a very cool experience to see the fish go into a feeding frenzy! Do keep the gate closed, which is posted on a sign. Some people weren't being attentive. There are observation points & a lovely trail to walk along the river with some informative signs here & there. It was so pleasant to take in the pretty, peaceful scenery & watch birds. We hope to return to see more action with the salmon & trout from November to February. Do check their website for up-to-date visitor information as they close the facility to the public after Memorial Day until Labor Day & times may be subject to change. read more

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Fun place for a weekend family outing! Great for kids, and plenty of open space, parking, and fresh air to run around and let the kiddos explore. They host plenty of family friendly educational events, including tot-time story time every month. Plenty of school outings/field trips come here, but they are open to the regular public to explore and observe. They are attached to the American River Hatchery, which has plenty of spawning pens where you can closely observe the fish and occasionally feed them (until the food runs out). Highly recommended! read more

This was a fun place to see the fish pretty up close. Make sure to follow their Facebook account for special events at the hatchery. We've been there multiple times and every time, we were amazed by the fish jumping out of the water at the ladder. There were rows holding tanks for the younger fish where you can feed them at certain time. I was able to see egg-harvesting in early December. Yes, it was a bit fishy but it was amazing to watch the staffs who expertly removed the egg from the salmon for fertilization and sorting the mature fish. The visitor center has a lot of information about the fish with lots of interesting exhibit. read more

The Nimbus Fish Hatchery is a great family friendly place and it's all free! It's a nice place to enjoy some nature and fish. There's free fish feeding which is my favorite activity here. The feeding area closes before the visitor center so plan to do that first. Be sure to check their Facebook page for the latest updates on hours and closuresThe visitor center is also worth a stop, with educational displays about fish spawning. There's restrooms available inside as well. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

This is an amazing place to go to see the salmon and steelhead trout fish hatchery. There was a school bus in the parking lot which indicated that a group of students were here to learn about these fish and the life cycle of the fish. It was fun to hear the children squeal as the huge salmon jumped in the air up the ladders as they do naturally in the rivers in their spawning areas. I suddenly realized my squeals were louder than the little kids. It is an amazing site to watch! Thanks to Tom, a volunteer there who spent time with us explaining the stages of hatching. Great time! read more

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I love the Nimbus Fish Hatchery! I think most of us who grew up in the area have fond memories of feeding the fish while on field trips! I recently went back for a chance just to get out in nature. I went through the small museum, took some nature pics along the water, and of course, fed the fish! It is a relaxing place to take a time out and the people who work here are kind and informative! It is free to visit and I highly recommend that you stop by if you are in the area. read more

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A fish hatchery somewhat close to home? We're all over it! The incredible and best part about this hatchery is you get to feed the enormous amounts of fish - for free!! Not lots of parking so best to go early or just go later morning when patrons are heading out. Don't stop with the first hatchery housing lots of little baby fish. Keep walking past the baby fish, explore the cozy little setup for patrons, and keep walking until you see a gate-lined area with more fish! Just be sure to close the gate door behind you. If available, there's a bucket of fish food at the entrance with cups - feed the fish and have fun doing it! Absolutely wonderful local exploration for everyone, especially for kids of all ages 1-100. Highly recommended if you like outdoorsy stuff, like fish, or just looking for something to do and get out of the house. Welcoming ambiance and there's a hiking trail right off the parking lot. Free Willy! Jk read more

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We visited the Nimbus Fish Hatchery during peak salmon season and joined their Sturgeon education session as well as a guided tour. The staff were knowledgeable, friendly, and great at explaining things to kids. Our children had a lot of fun watching the salmon, learning about conservation, and especially spending time at the fish feeding area, where they could observe the fish up close. They stayed fully engaged the entire time. Nimbus Fish Hatchery is a wonderful spot for families who enjoy nature and wildlife ~ especially great for kids who love animals and hands-on learning. read more

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As long as I've lived here, I never came to the hatchery. I have used the trails in the nearby area plenty of times. This was pretty cool, and I learned how the hatchery plays a part in keeping the population thriving. I attended the tour, and the guide was great. He gave a great deal of information. read more

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Was a nice stop to take our 5 year old on a family trip to see Grandma. We visited in the offseason, so we got to see the exhibit and a few of the fry runs with the baby baby salmon. The rangers onsite were still very friendly and were more than willing to share all of their knowledge on the salmon. Will have to visit again during the busy season to really partake in all the hatchery has to offer. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - Little guy taking in the informational videos - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

The fish hatchery at Nimbus is fascinating to visit. Here is where generations of salmon get their start before their long journey to the Pacific. The visitors center displays dramatise the process, starting from when they are but part of a cluster of salmon eggs. There are always busloads of school kids visiting the hatchery in the fall. The nearby fish ladder where returning salmon who have spent their whole life adventuring in the ocean before their instinct draws them back up the waterways to begin the cycle again. It's a day spent on the edge of the American River. The bike trail runs alongside it. The hatchery is but one of the coolest aspects of living in a city with two major rivers coursing through it. Oh, and well-behaved doggies on leashes are allowed to walk around the baby fish tank area. Every half hour, they come out and give little paper cups of fish food to sprinkle in the nursery tanks for the baby salmon. I love coming here every Nov-Dec. read more

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A fun place to visit for all ages. You can see fish you can feed fish The visitor Center is very informative and professional. There's plenty of wildlife besides fish ask about the great horned owls that nest in a cave up on the cliff. There's all kinds of birds sometimes deer sometimes sea lions one of the best things about it is it is completely free! read more

When the bestie says, let's go play in the sunshine... It's my moral imperative, to go out, and do just that! I love this part of Sacramento, and spend a fair amount of time enjoying the area. Especially back in the day, walking through the hatchery itself, and looking at all the little fishies jumping through the water... Pretty cool stuff. Newsflash! Who knew that there are epic trails for walking, hiking, and biking, all around this part of the hatchery?!? Apparently, I'm the last one on this page lol If you've never been, and you want to have those moments in nature, this is absolutely the place for you. Everything is absolutely beautiful, worth stopping to look at, and it truly is a piece of heaven, right in our own backyard! We saw owls, deer, fish, all sorts of birds, and even some pretty awesome humans! When you hear the phrase a room with a view, it truly doesn't get better than this view. There are some places along the way if you feel the need to stop and sit that you can. It's a pretty epic place to go bike riding, as the trails, for the bikes are paved and marked. This truly is a happening spot. Go get your nature on, and you will thank me later! read more

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I have been visiting the hatchery for the past 25 years. It is one the best lesser known attractions in the Sacramento area. It is totally free to visit and to park in the parking lot. FREE. Great family friendly outing to enjoy nature. It is located off Gold Country Blvd off the Hazel Avenue exit of Highway 50. Things to do: + Check out the visitor center which is open year round. But I recommend looking at the website for updated information and hours of operation. + Check out the raceways. The raceways are the small outside fish ponds located next to the visitor center. The fish hatched here are raised in the raceways until they are released. You can buy fish food to feed them. A kiddo handful of fish food cost a quarter. But the raceways are currently closed to the public until further notice. + Salmon and trout ladder run viewing. The Chinook salmon usually tun around the beginning of November - mid December and the steelhead trout run January - February. The fish swim the ladders in search of a place to spawn. The ladders lead into the hatchery. It is quite a sight to behold, the multitude of fish swimming the elevated ladders. There are see through reinforced windows along the ladder that provide views of the underwater action. + Walk 1/4 mile River Discovery Trail. It is ADA accessible. Has gorgeous views of the river. + Walk or bike the American River (AR) Trail, it is also ADA accessible. The trail can be accessed near the front of the parking lot. But the paved trail has lots of curves and blind spots. + Walk to the Nimbus Dam. When the water level is low, you can walk the higher dry river bed near the ramp. Stay close to the ramp because they do release water. When they do, an alarm will ring with a 5 minute warning. So no entering the water. Tip: You can walk the America River Trail from the hatchery to get there. I do not though. Even though I walk single file on the AR Trail, the cyclist come on fast taking those blind curves and there is no jump space.I take the sidewalk on Gold Country Blvd to get to the Nimbus Dam. read more

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This place is packed. No parking if u come after 11am. I recommend u arrive early unless u plan to circling around waiting for someone to leave or park n walk little bit further. First time here and didn't know will be that many visitors. Kids definitely enjoy watching the fish and do the feeding. No entrance fee and u get to feed the fish without any fee. Good place to explore around. They have small visitors center in the middle. Have a tiny restroom just be careful since it's very small don't ever push it hard , people behind the door could get hurt. Someone almost got slam due to very tiny space to even move around. So far is a fun place to visit . They have lots of picnic table outside for people to sit n chill. Nice nature place to walk around too. read more

Have you driven by the hatchery sign and said one day? It's time to finally go! It's a free activity and you get to feed fishes! Don't forget the little bit of exercise you get walking up and down the fish. Highly recommend bringing your own containers for the food to feed the fish. Don't feed the babies (please follow/read the signs). They're too itty-bitty for the food offered. Recommend for kids and adults. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

My kids love this place. Make sure you guys go early or they run out of fish food pretty quick. It is a very informative place you can learn about our local trout and salmon from the spawning and hatching stage all the way through their life cycle. They even have a cute little playground for the kiddos. Staff is super friendly. read more

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We visited the last weekend before they closed. It was bustling due to the coming closure. The museum was fascinating. All the pools were open. Each pool had a different age of fish. You can feed the fish for free in the pools behind the museum. The whole experience was free and was well worth visiting. The fish ladders are still open for viewing, but are only running during the season. read more

This place is really cool and fun for kids. My kids love feeding the fish and watching all the fish jump around. Their visitor center is also really cool and has some interesting facts to learn. read more

First time coming here and sad that they're closing due to budget cuts! Definitely recommend bringing your little ones to feed the fishes and enjoy some outdoor activities with them. My girls loved feeding the fishes! Come different season, they will have different type of fishes. read more

Shows nature, environment, you can feed fish, awesome ! I had fun with my grandson! Recommended!

My family has been coming here nearly every year since I was little. It's a tradition for us. We learned about the fish and their ecosystems and we are at the age that are children are now learning and feeding fish at young ages. It is fun for all ages and everyone can learn something. We also like to take a walk down the path a little ways and see if we can find any fish swimming up. Such a cool place! I learn something new everytime. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - The entry to the fish hatchery. - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

Great place to take the family and learn a thing or two This is a fish hatchery along the river outside of Sacramento. They have very large holding tanks of juvenile salmon that you can feed when the workers give out fish food in cups. The kids really enjoyed throwing fish food and washing the juvenile fish have a feeding frenzy. Shoot, I even enjoyed it. Very educational and I recommend parents bringing their children here so they can learn and try something different read more

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I visited the Nimbus Fish Hatchery Sunday November 10, 2019. Apparently the hatchery just opened the "ladders" to the fish the Monday prior. The parking lot was nuts by the time I was back from my bicycle ride at 10:30ish. I recommend arriving before 9:00 and park in the overflow lots. It was neat to see the juvenile fish and fantastic to see the mature fish. There was a giant wheelbarrow full of fish food in the juvenile fish areas. Grab a cup from the first area and fill it in the second juvenile area. If I didn't have my bicycle with me I would have liked to have checked out the informational video being shown inside. I understand that the mature salmon headed into the hatchery are slaughtered, eggs harvested, and the fish are artificially reproduced that way. Apparently the meat goes to local native American tribes. So while it may be controversial, without this necessary hatchery system, the fish couldn't accomplish their mating because of the Nimbus Dam and Folsom Dam. read more

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I love this place! Feeding the fish is fun, especially in the take furthest from the parking lot where they are super excited when you throw the pellets in. The walk along the river is beautiful. The visitor center has clean bathrooms and is informative. There's also a small fish themed play area outside which cracked me up and kids were having a great time in. Can't recommend enough if you have a spare hour one day and want to do something different. read more

This is a great family outing. The family can feed the fish. There is a visitor center where you can learn about the journey of the salmon and the trout. For the kids there is a little play ground outside. They have a walking trail also. If you are in Sacramento area you might want to spend time at this hatchery. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - where the you can feed the fish. - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

Great place to spend half a day learning about fish and animal habitats, especially if you have children! Very knowledgeable gentleman at the Ranger Station! A joy to talk to. The trail along the River is great! Plenty to see and learn! read more

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Had a great time with my parents, my wife and my daughter. It was so nice to see that a place that I hold core memories with as a child has not changed one bit and still hold its charm. Hope this hatchery stays open for more generations to come. read more

All websites and signs posted state the hours are 7:30-3 but the workers closed the gates an hour early this past Saturday because, & I quote "we started at 5am and are ready to go home". There were several disappointed children and families turned away at 2pm. When asking the visitor center about the hours, I was told "they close whenever they feel like there aren't enough people to make staying open worth it." There were at least 50 people between the fish part, visitor center & lookout point. The open hours need to be honored, regardless of when the workers started, how they feel or how many people are there. read more

What a great place! Took my significant other here for his first time and he was blown away. It's one thing being out in nature on a nice day by the river, but the fact that there were thousands of fish to feed and a new bike trail we discovered, it was priceless!!! This place is great for families and kids! They have the information center that takes the kids through an interactive journey of the fish from birth. It's pretty cool that you can see inside the factory itself where they collect all of the fish eggs. It's a very quiet and relaxing place, you hear the sound of the fish jumping and the water flowing. I'll definitely be coming back with my niece. read more

I don't know why it took me so long to check this place out when I live about 5 minutes away. My 3 year old loves coming here and enjoys feeding the fish. There are plenty of parking spots and it's free. read more

Bring a cup to hold fish food....and bring a lot of quarters. Cool place to visit, especially if you have kids. There are many people biking at the trail nearby and around the area. The parking lot is used for the people visiting the facility and the bikers. The whole facility seems very clean and well maintained. You can explore all around, and pretty much chill at the many benches nearby. Super kid friendly. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

Learning at this place has been a childhood memory of mine, and coming back today was a little disappointing due to the fact that the hatchery was closed to all visitors due to covid. However, the trails and the riverside observatories were still open and we were able to see the salmon climbing up the fish ladder and swimming up the river. It was a truly lovely walk and the area was well maintained. I wish we could go in and see the process of how they raise the young fish along with how they extract the eggs, but unfortunately covid prevented it from happening. read more

Love this place been coming here since I was a kid watching the salmon climb the ladder or feeding the fish walking around taking in fresh air put the TV remote down unplug your kids gaming system and get outside and live..See the fish feed the fish while learning.. It's more HD than your TV will ever be read more

Hello! We took a tour with our school and Jason was our guide. He was so informative/knowledgeable, funny, and friendly. Just wanted to give him a shout out! We really enjoyed our tour and learned so much :) thank you! read more

We love the fish hatchery! Our kids always have fun and really enjoy feeding the fish. The negative is they don't follow their posted hours. It's very disappointing to show up 30 mins before their closing time and see the worker locking the gates. I wish they'd actually follow the hours they have posted. read more

If not but this Hatchery, salmon and steelhead spawning would cease to exist in the American River Delta area. This honorable and noble cause is responsible for spawning millions of salmon and steelhead trying to return to their ancestral spawning grounds up river, now blocked by hundreds of man-made dams. This is great place for kids and grownups alike. Very educational and fun at the same time. Make sure to bring a cup to help feed the fish. The museum is free and the tour is self guided. You can also walk up and down the American River along a nearby path and enjoy the sites. Look we can't go back in time and return Nature to its natural, perfect state but at least the Nimbus Fishery can ensure the survival of the salmon and steel head species. Thank you Nimbus Fish Hatchery for doing such a good thing which helps us all. read more

Nimbus Fish Hatchery - Aquariums Near Me - Gold River, California

The hatchery is fairly easy to find. Seeing the fish in its different stages is pretty cool. You can get lost in time watching the different tanks. Cool part is there are fish food dispensers so you can feed the fish. They are like gum ball machines so make sure you have change. read more

We visit the hatchery about 1 time a year with the kids. They love to feed the fishes. Go early or there won't be any more fish food for the kids to feed the fishes. The last two times we have been here the visitors center have been closed. Use the restroom prior to going here and bring water to wash your hands after. Can't wait until the visitors center is back up and running. read more

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This place has become my daughter's favorite spot. And the best part is this place is free and you can bring visitors too. And a great learning experience for the adults and the children. You can walk up and down the fish runs watching the young salmon learning to swim upstream. For just 25 cents, you can get a cupful of fish food. You can watch the young fish leap and splash to get the food. Also, if you are looking for something more exciting and want to bone up on your salmon facts you can drop into the visitors center. The guy at the visitor center was very helpful and give us hints when to come next time for salmon season and gave us in depth history about the place. There is also a play area with a giant salmon that kids can climb and my daughter and her friend enjoyed playing peekaboo. Definitely going back again with my kids. read more