With volunteer Henry Yetter, 6, Wyoming Game and Fish warden Jon Stephens demonstrates what can happen when a life jacket is too loose.

Clear skies, warm temperatures and a pond stocked full of Snake River cutthroat brought 220 kids aged 13 and younger to R Park Saturday for Kids Fishing Day.
 
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department put on the event and gave the kids all the tools necessary. The young trout slayers divided into groups of five and rotated to different stations where they learned about aquatic invasive species, boat and angling safety, fish habitat, fish ID and anatomy.
 
This was all before each kid was handed a free fishing pole to take a shot at the stocked pond.
 
Game and Fish fisheries biologist Tracy Stephens helped organize the event and said the nearly 2-year-old park was a good change from the usual Kids Fishing Day location at the Jackson National Fish Hatchery.
 
“It’s such a big open space and safe,” Stephens said. “The kids can run around and just enjoy the park, play in the water and have a good time in addition to learning a little bit about fish and fishing.”
 
The man-made pond in the new park at the intersection of Highways 22 and 390 in Wilson is connected to a smaller pond with a man-made stream. The pond sits adjacent to a large area of green grass where fish and boat experts from organizations such as Game and Fish, Jackson Hole Trout Unlimited, High Country Outfitters and the 4H sport fishing club conducted the fishing lessons.
 
The anglers spent 12 minutes at each station and received a crash course in everything there is to know about how to be a safe and responsible angler.
 
“The kids get a little bit of an education and aren’t just handed a fishing pole,” Stephens said. “It helps them appreciate this resource a little bit more.”
 
Deacon Saulters, 10, said he was able to learn something new at each station. His favorite was where a cutthroat was split open to display its anatomy.
 
“I thought seeing the heart of the trout was really cool,” Deacon said.
 
Deacon was one of the few kids who didn’t rush to the pond to fish or to the food stand set up by Bubba’s Bar-B-Que. Deacon had another idea in mind.
 
“They haven’t put the fish in the lake yet, and I want to see them,” he said.
 
Later in the afternoon the pond was stocked with more cutthroat, but some kids had their attention focused elsewhere.
 
While Deacon was waiting for the big release, Jack Williams, 7, was releasing one of his own cutthroats. Jack came prepared with his own rod and his own artificial lure. And it worked out well for him as he landed the first fish of the day.
 
“You need to reel hard. If you have a big fish and it’s in the shallows you have to run back so you can get it in easily,” Jack said. “But with smaller fish like this it’s easier.”
 
Contact Clark Forster at 732-7065 or sports@jhnewsandguide.com.