Children hooked on learn to fish day

Brooklyn Sharplin, 5 (left) and Dexter Sharplin, 7, from Napier with their hard-won rainbow trout. Photo / Paul Taylor

Children learnt to cast, hook and wait patiently at the Fish and Game Kids' Fishing Day on Saturday.

Held at the organisation's Napier game farm, Fish and Game officer Mark Venman said the annual day was a great opportunity to introduce children to fishing and teach them how to do it.

"It's also a good way of teaching kids patience," he said.

"It's not a computer game, it's not instant, but when they do get the fish that delayed gratification is worthwhile."

Children were given a quick casting practice on the lawn before volunteers hooked a rainbow trout in the pond and supervised as the child reeled it in.

"They could see the trout jumping out of the water, and see them three or four metres away," said Mr Venman.

"[The children] were really excited, some of them were almost shaking."

The "exceptional" size of the fish this year also put smiles on the kids' faces, Mr Venman said, with the average trout weighing about 1.3kg.

"They were big enough to get the kids interested but not big enough to pull them into the pond," he said.

It took most children about 10 minutes to reel in their prize, but others took up to half an hour because of the large size of the fish and small size of the angler.

No child left empty-handed, each taking home a certificate and their trout, some of which Mr Venman was asked to fillet.

He said Fish and Game was hugely grateful to the number of people who volunteered to teach the children.

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