Kids Can Catch event, which was hosted at the West Stettler Park pond on Saturday morning till noon, July 9 saw 26 kids participating, although no one was able to get any catch.
“This could be due to a number of reasons, but it is mostly because of the warm weather when the fish is sluggish and will refuse to take a bait,” said Scoot Kallweit, Stettler District Fish and Wildlife Officer. “But, although it is potentially because of the weather doesn’t mean we haven’t had success, in the past years we know of people who were able to get a catch.”
The West Stettler pond was stocked several years ago with Northern Pike and offers the perfect local opportunity for some catch and release activities.
“This year’s event coincided with the Alberta free fishing weekend,” said Maddie Hall, summer student with Town of Stettler, Parks and Leisure Department. “Alberta has two free fishing weekends each year, one in July and one on Family Day long weekend, when residents do not need a WIN card or a fishing license to go out and fish, however all other rules and regulations are still applicable.”
According to Hall, although kids under 16 years of age do not need fishing license, holding the Kids Can Catch Day on this weekend serves the perfect opportunity for the whole family to step outside and participate in a new activity they may not have had the opportunity to try before.
“On Saturday, we saw this first hand,” added Hall. “We had 26 kids out there which is one of our best outcomes since this event started, and everyone had all different skill levels.”
Every kid got a bag of goodies that included the necessities for fishing, such as hook, leader, bobber and knot guide and a couple of fun things for later at home like a colouring book, stickers and temporary tattoo.
“After the kids were done fishing, they were able to come tell us about their adventure of the morning and had the opportunity to get a brand new fishing rod or tackle box that were donated for this event,” said Hall. “We hope that hosting events like this will be helpful for the youth of Stettler to get active outside during the summer months.”