Free Fishing Days held at Bennett Spring State Park

A lone angler takes advantage of Free Fishing Weekend.

Ken White/Special to the Daily Mail

Bennett Spring State Park was a bee hive of activity last weekend with the annual Kids Fishing Day taking place Saturday.

Coupled with the Free Fishing Weekend in Missouri, a crowd descended on the Bennett Spring area. Not only were there some 500 youngsters at the stream, but there were hundreds of tubers, canoes and kayaks floating down the Niangua River, as well as many campers in the camping area at Bennett Springs State Park. During Free Fishing Days in Missouri, anglers may fish without needing a permit.

There were anglers from Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma who were after trout at Bennett Spring as they took advantage of the free fishing weekend.

Haydn Chadan, 8, of Phillipsburg, with his first trout during Kids Free fishing day at Bennett Spring.

Ken White/Special to the Daily Mail

Chad Davis drove over from Pittsburg, Kan., to test the waters.

“I used to live in Lebanon which is close to Bennett where I had fished for trout since I was seven,” noted Davis. “One opening day at the park I caught a limit of rainbow trout and two of them weighed more than four pounds each.

Davis continued: “When I heard about the Free Fishing Days, I decided to head back to my favorite spot along the stream where I caught a lot of trout in the past. I managed to catch three fish and was glad I made the trip.”

Some of the more than 500 youngsters casting for trout at Bennett Spring on Kids Fishing Day.

Ken White/Special to the Daily Mail

The Kids Fishing Day had been scheduled for May 6, but was rescheduled for June 10 due to high water caused by the heavy rains the first week of the month, resulting in the stream being high and dingy.

Ben Havens, Fish Hatchery manager, said, “In spite of all the activities going on this month, baseball, soccer, summer camp and summer school –– we have a lot of kids fishing. With the change in the schedule we didn’t expect as large a crowd as in May.

“Since the weather is good a lot of kids and their parents are here to participate. We will stock some more this afternoon. It’s a fun day for everyone.”

A special section of the stream was reserved for kids age 15-and-under. Along with parents there were volunteers to help, as the adults were encouraged to let the kids fish by themselves as much as possible. Lunch was available, and educational events ran from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Don Nichols, Kansas City, brought his young grandson to the event. He said, “I was on hand last year and saw what a good time everyone was having, so this year I brought my 8-year-old grandson to give it a try.

“On his second cast, he hooked a trout and was so excited he dropped his pole in the stream. I grabbed it, gave it back to him and he landed the fish that was still on the line. He was one happy boy. He went on to catch another.”

Nichols said his grandson is now hooked on trout fishing.

“He ask me if we would be coming (back) next year,” said Nichols. “I assured him that we would. It’s a good event for everyone. In fact, I think the parents had as much or more fun than the kids.”

Kids Free Fishing Day

Kids Free Fishing Day will also be held Aug. 19 at Montauk and Roaring River.