Ganaraska River Fishway - Port Hope, ON
Posted by: 
jiggs11
N 43° 58.129 W 078° 17.683
17T E 717009 N 4871967
Ganaraska River Fishway, located just south of Hwy 401 in Port Hope.
Waymark Code: WMVMTP
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 05/05/2017
Views: 6
The fishway was completed in 1974.
From Ganaraskafishway.com:
The Ganaraska Fishway is a pool and weir style consisting of a concrete channel ninety feet long and five feet wide. Baffles divide the area into nine pools each of which is about one foot higher than the former. The water flows from pool to pool. The fish negotiate each jump or level at their leisure until they have cleared the dam; approximately twelve feet altogether.
The fish are attracted to the tunnel by the fast flowing water. The trout can easily manage the steep, initial jump although coarse fish such as carp and suckers become discouraged. Likewise, sea lampreys have the ability to swim up the strong current leading to the tunnel but these parasites are prohibited entrance into the tunnel by a steel plate which they can not climb over. The carefully constructed design of the fishway purposely selects the preferred or desired species access to the upstream of the Ganaraska River.
The fishway is used practically year round although the most popular times are the spring and fall and this is explained by the spawning times for the species. Rainbow trout spawn in the spring. Their eggs are laid in gravel and they stay there for a very short time. After the fish are born the young stay in the streams from one to four years. After such a time, they enter the large lakes. The brown trout and pacific salmon species (coho and chinook) however spawn in the fall.
The eggs develop over the winter while they are in the gravel and in the spring when the young arrive, they go to the lake quickly. Operations at the fishway generally focuses upon the rainbow trout.
The Fishway is made possible by a joint venture between the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ganaraska River Conservation Authority, OFAH, Ganaraska Sportsmen Association and many volunteers from Port Hope and the surrounding area.
The Fishway is easily accessible by following Hwy 401 and exiting south on Hwy 28. A right turn on Molson Street and a further right turn will bring you into the Conservation Area parking lot. The fishway is directly in front of you.
River/Waterway: Ganaraska River
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Visit Instructions:
Please share a self-made picture of the Fish Ladder and tell us something about it. Did you see any fishes? You do not have to be in the picture, neither does your GPSr.