Families flock to pond to Go Fish

Afree fishing opportunity wasn’t available Sunday in their Westside neighbourhood, so the Evans family drove to the Hall Road area of Kelowna.

They had been looking forward to the start of the popular Go Fish program in Shannon Lake and were dismayed to hear it was delayed a week due to unusually high water levels.

“The kids love doing this and they didn’t want to wait,” mom Shannon Evans said of the enthusiasm shown for angling by her two youngsters, Dylan and Reece.

“So we hopped in the car and here we are,” Evans said as the family joined dozens of others Sunday afternoon trying their luck at the scenic setting of the Hall Road pond.

With a man-made water spout at the south end and tucked into an area of well-kept homes, the pond isn’t exactly a rural oasis. But it’s as close to a wilderness area as some city kids may get, parent Lesley Neufeld suggested.

“I know some of my friends, their kids have never gone fishing and never even gone camping,” Neufeld said. “There’s so much else for kids to do today, but I think just relaxing with a few fishing rods is a great way for families to spend time together.

“You might not catch anything,” Neufeld said. “But in a way, that’s almost beside the point. You come out here to do something as a family, talk to each other, just enjoy not rushing around somewhere.”

The pond was stocked with 500 young rainbow trout, increasing the odds kids could catch a fish. The program, which allows kids 15 and under to fish without a licence, continues every Sunday at the Hall Road pond until Father’s Day.

It’s scheduled to begin next Sunday at Shannon Lake, and also continue until Father’s Day. Go Fish is supported by the Peachland Sportsmen’s Association and the Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C.