By Madison Butkus
Hometown Weekly Reporter
Dover Parks and Recreation held their annual Youth Fishing Derby at Channing Pond. This Dover pond was packed with children and their families ready to catch some fish and see who could reel in the biggest one.
Awards for the biggest fish caught were given out to those within three age categories. 6 years old and under winners were Weston N. (5) who caught a 10” bass and Hayes W. (6) who caught an 11” bass. 7-10 year old winners were Alex K. (10) who caught a 12” catfish and Chip W. (8) who caught a 14” bass. 11-15 year old winners were Keegan G. (12) who caught a 10” perch, Harrison M. (15) who caught a 10” pickerel and Max K. (15) who caught an 11” catfish.
There was also an award given out for the largest trout catch since Dover Parks and Recreation stocks Channing Pond with trout each year, specifically for this event. This year’s winner was Nicholas C. (8) who caught a 12” rainbow trout. While trout were stocked in the pond, Ghiloni laughed at the fact that most of the fish caught that day were anything other than trout, including catfish, pike, bass, and sunfish.
No matter what size fish was caught, all registered participants were automatically entered for the chance to win lots of additional prizes, such as tackle boxes, spin and power baits, fishing poles, and so much more. These prize winners were picked randomly throughout the event so there were multiple chances for those to win.
The director of Dover Parks and Recreation, Mark Ghiloni, and Co-Director, Nicole Wainwright, were both in attendance for this event. They could be seen checking little one’s in at the beginning of the event, measuring fish as they were caught, and keeping track of each fish that was reeled in. To further help out with this event, local Dover-Sherborn High School students had volunteered, lending a hand with measuring the fish, detaching them from the hooks, and releasing them back into the pond.
These volunteers additionally taught youngsters some important lessons like how to catch and release fish. Most importantly, they needed to make sure the fish had enough water in the buckets so that the water could move through their gills in order for the fish to breathe. When releasing the fish back into the pond, they were told to nudge the fish into the water so that it could once again get acclimated to the water and begin to breathe/swim off again.
Even with cloudy, rainy, and rather chilly conditions, everyone seemed to have a blast at this fishing derby. Many of the attendees participate in this event every year and are eager for its return once again.
