Sisters kids catch the big ones

Happy faces were everywhere on National Kids Fishing Day at Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery on Saturday.

Children aged 10 and under each had a chance to catch one of the nearly 600 trout stocked in the pond at the Camp Sherman hatchery. Parents brought their children to learn to cast and haul in their first big fish.

Kids either kept their trout for dinner or released their catch and tried again.

While the pond appeared to be the main event, there were several stops along the way describing fish, their growth cycles and life in the streams and lakes, including bugs. Boys and girls loved learning about bugs and their importance to the fish.

Sean Willitts, age nine, stopped at the table where kids learned to tie flies. Sean has caught a lot of fish in his day, but he has never caught a fish with a fly he made himself.

Willitts, who has been fishing for three years, does a lot of fly-fishing with his family: mom, dad and sisters. Fly-fishing, he says, uses a fly instead of a lure. It also requires more technique. No bobbers are used in fly-fishing.

Children learned a lot about the creatures they caught: "Sliminess" helps a fish swim. It also protects them from infection, which is why you should never pick up a fish with dry hands. Dry hands could remove some of the slime fish need to stay healthy.

The slime makes it a little harder for people to hold onto them, but it also makes it harder for other predators, namely birds.

Female fish have two egg sacs. On an eight-pound fish, each sac holds 1,000 eggs. Imagine carrying 2,000 eggs. After learning about all the fishes' internal organs, a short walk to the next table showed fish in their various stages of development.

Nearby kids practiced fly casting on the lawn and won prizes for catching plastic fish at various distances.

Cindy Glick, storyteller, was inside the huge fish tent telling an old Yakima Indian tale about why we have to use a fishing pole to catch fish:

"Coyote brought water to the Yakima people in Northern Washington, but looked at the river and saw no fish and water full of dirt. No plants lined the shore preventing the dirt from seeping into the water. Coyote planted trees and plants to strengthen the banks and later put logs in the river for houses for fish to hide.

Coyote brought salmon to the Indian people and taught them how to catch fish. But the people did not follow all Coyote's instructions about how to care for fish. In disgust, Coyote took away their fish traps and told the people they would have to learn to fish on their own."

Steve Leriche from Madras brought his children, Sean and Ryan, and neighbor Jay Roth with his daughters Jamie and Jennifer. The children have been coming to the event for five years.

They all caught fish weighing from 1.5 to 5.5 pounds. This is usually the start of their fishing season and a great way to practice casting. They used power bait and worms. All the kids said pulling in the fish was the best part.

Leriche said his dad and grandfather took him fishing as a child and he has passed on the passion to his kids.

Isabella Huerta, age six, and her brother Mario, age eight, were both at fishing day for the first time, learning to cast. Catching the fish is the best part for Isabella, but Mario said he likes to watch the fish. Proud parents and grandparents were all there to assist and teach. Their family also does a lot of ocean fishing.

With mild temperatures and no wind, it proved to be a perfect day for fishing for the 300 or so in attendance.