Free family trout fishing clinic is January 20

(January 12, 2006) –– A family trout-fishing clinic to prepare anglers for the Dolese Youth Park Pond 5th annual trout season will be held at 7 p.m. January 20 at the Putnam City High School Gym, NW 50 and Meridian.

Certified fishing instructors will teach participants everything from the proper bait and equipment to cleaning and cooking trout.

The class is free but pre-registration is required. Call 755-4014.

The City’s trout season at Dolese opened January 1 and ends February 28. The pond will be stocked again on January 19, February 2 and February 16.

"Thanks to sponsor support, we doubled the number of rainbow trout we stocked last season. In 2005 we stocked about 9,000 fish. This season we are stocking more than 18,000. The trout range in length from 9 to 24 inches," Fisheries Biologist Bob Martin said.

Martin suggests anglers use salmon eggs, small spinners, small minnows, earthworms or Power Bait with small hooks and four-to-six pound fishing line. The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Oklahoma City Parks and Recreation Department, BancFirst and Nexstep sponsor the season.

The trout season is a part of the “Close to Home” Fishing Program formed to provide more fishing opportunities in Oklahoma City. Call the H.B. Parsons Fish Hatchery, 755-4014, for more information.