Take a Kid Fishing | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Families Enjoy Annual Fishing Event

Jun 13, 2022

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A man with two girls and a boy stand in front of trees, all 3 kids holding huge trout. — Fishing for trout at Winthrop National Fish Hatchery was very productive in 2022!

At Winthrop National Fish Hatchery's Kids Fishing Day event in 2022, kids often caught fish so big, they could barely lift them. After two years of Covid that closed public events, the trout had gotten enormous!

These trout came from Entiat National Fish Hatchery, where they had become an attractant to American bears. The bears liked to chew up the irrigation system in between snacking on fish; so hatchery manager Craig Chisam was glad to pass them along to Winthrop's hatchery instead. Thanks to help from Yakama Nation Fisheries along with staff from both hatcheries, the trout were delivered to the pond in time for the event. 477 people arrived, eager to see what they could catch.

A young child held by a grinning woman examines a small trout. — Big or small, fish are fascinating!

And eager they were! In the first 30 minutes after the gate was opened, 220 people checked in to pick up passports for kids age 14 and under. Children had to get at least 5 stamps in their passports before they could go fishing.

A woman in t-shirt and ballcap displays brochures while standing in a tent promoting recycling. — Methow Recycles shared information on water conservation and gave out free water bottles celebrating the 150th anniversary of the National Fish Hatchery System, the foundation of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Activity stations were scattered across the grassy lawns between buildings, ponds, and raceways, with community volunteers and hatchery staff welcoming kids under shady tents. The Bureau of Reclamation showed them how streams and rivers work by using a water table. Methow Recycles handed out re-usable water bottles with the logo for the 150th anniversary of the National Fish Hatchery System imprinted on them.

A man in braids and cowboy hat talks to a group of women and children seated in front of him. — Dayton Edmonds captures the attention of families.

Indigenous storyteller Dayton Edmonds shared tales with visitors. Kids could try their hand at fly-casting, and many took home handmade flies. Chief Joseph Dam's Theresa Poulton

A uniformed woman in sunglasses smiles as she holds up a lifevest. — Theresa Poulson, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers employee at Chief Joseph Dam, demonstrates boating safety.

taught boating safety lessons, with the Methow Beaver Project demonstrated how humans can make dams for habitat restoration projects that borrow from what beavers do naturally. Staff from Trout Unlimited and Okanogan Conservation District wowed folks with an up-close look at aquatic life. From the Fisheries and Aquatic Conservation's brand-new event trailer, staff supplied handsome bandanas for kids to color with fabric crayons, and set up a knot-tying station for practice fastening line to hook.

Two boys hold up bandanas with colored salmon on them, standing in front of a Service tent with a uniformed employee seated at a table and smiling. — Two youth display their hand-colored bandanas.

And folks from Methow Valley Fly Fishers, Colville Confederated Tribes, and other community volunteers came to help kids do what they most wanted: catch a fish!

A smiling man holds a large rainbow trout for his two children to view. — The rainbow trout were so big, they could be intimidating for children!

Additional, smaller trout were placed in the pond with tags, too. Tagged fish earned kids prizes, like new fishing rods. Anyone who caught a fish could take it to the cleaning station, where volunteers gutted and scaled the trout and put them into bags to take home. Many families had a fine meal of trout for dinner-- and some had plenty left for later!

It was a memorable event on a fine, sunny day. Beautiful banners decorated the site and the volunteers and staff sported t-shirts featuring local children's art, thanks to the Methow Arts Alliance. Some new fans of fishing will test out their new rods and enthusiasm on the rivers and lakes later this summer. That's what makes it all worthwhile!