Tenderfoot Creek Hatchery

Tenderfoot Creek Hatchery focuses on enhancing coho, pink, chum and chinook salmon stocks in the Squamish River watershed. The hatchery uses rafts and gillnets to capture coho and chinook salmon and releases more than 3.3 million juvenile fish each year. It is also involved in a number of partnership initiatives such as the West Vancouver netpen program, the Squamish Terminals netpen program, as well as in producing eggs for a number of hatcheries and projects in Vancouver and Bowen Island. Here you will learn about the Squamish salmon populations, their importance to the ecosystem, and Tenderfoot’s involvement in the populations.

In sustaining salmon stocks, Tenderfoot Creek Hatchery also helps to maintain the local population of bald eagles. In the winter months it is a popular viewing location to see the Squamish eagles. 

Tours

Visitors can embark on a self-guided tours of the hatchery via information signs. Guided tours can be accommodated as operations allow. Please call 604-898-3657 in advance to ask about tour availability and for further information.

The hatchery is open to the public 7 days a week from 9AM - 3PM. It's a great place to view all the salmon species and eagles. They have public washrooms and picnic tables. A new interpretive walk with signage will be completed by April 2024.

When to see salmon

Chinook adults - July to September

Coho adults - November to January

Chum adults - November

Coho juveniles - year-round

Chinook juveniles - year-round