Tegan is fast on her way of becoming an ultimate outdoors-person as her family hunts, fishes, camps and loves to take the 4-wheelers into designated areas. Tegan is at the front of the pack on all of this and participates in these activities often while wearing a princess dress according to her Dad.
Truth be told, Dillon Res. is being stocked to the MAX with trout after the locals complained about poor fishing. Tegan's family practices C&R 99% of the time but chose to cook this trout over their campfire later that evening. In my view this is the best way to eat a trout. (They were pleasantly surprised that the texture and flavor of the meat was better than expected-I had warned of some poor quality issues like white-mushy meat from stockers but this was not the case.)
Stocked trout are not quite the same quality on so many levels as native fish and harvesting stocked trout is somewhat of a tradition these days in Colorado. Yes, I moan and groan about C&R but understand that even I believe that there are times when eating a fish is not the end of the planet. Stocking rainbow trout in Colorado is not a perfect solution to improving sport fishing in Colorado but one of the DOW’s primary tools in a lot of reservoirs. Providing “first catch” opportunities for children like Tegan’s here makes me a little warmer on the subject.
Congrats to Tegan and her first catch! It is not just fisherMEN out there. Plenty of room for both boys and girls on the water.
Good luck and good fishing!
12 comments:
I think stocking - and eating - is PERFECT for introducing kids to the sport. I remember my kids first attempts at fishing, in the Adirondacks, and they fished for HOURS and caught nothing, and were very disapointed and didn't get what was so fun about it. Only one of them currently still fishes, and I think that has a lot to do with it. Fishing someplace like this where Tegan has a good chance of success, and then, even better - finding out that you CAN eat them (sometimes!) and that they taste awesome - is a good way to ensure that she will probably continue to find it as fun as being a princess. And hey, if princesses can fish... well, the world's her oyster!
Nice post.
Keep those kids fishing. Someone has to replace us old codgers.
Mark
DHIMC: Thank you so much and I agree completely in regards to the importance of success when kids are fishing.
In Colorado there are many different opinions on every facet of fishing and the arguments can get quite heated over the smallest details.
The issue most have with rainbow trout stocking is that it can lessen the habitat for native trout. Rainbow trout can interbreed with native cutthroat trout which can be a serious issue for specific waters and strains of endangered cutthroat.
Biologists for the most part have learned this lesson the hard way and reacting with better management.
Great article, and I too love looking at photos that people miraculously seem to find when I'm around.
Tegan looks like she's on top of the world; great catch!
Congratulations to Tegan! That's awesome! You go, girl!
It's so nice to seed kids actually outside being active! Way to go Tegan.
Great job Tegan!
The real-life thrill of catching a fish can set a young person on a path that they will follow for the rest of their life. I think it causes them to build a certain honesty within their character that can be found in few other activities. Great post!
Every picture tells a story, and, that is one happy young female angler there. Great that her experiences with fishing and the outdoors is a positive one. Hopefully, this memory will be instilled into her mind as she grows older and enjoys more of what the outdoors has to offer.
Looks like you have found a new fishing partner. Great Post.
It is so amazing to see young kids fishing nowadays! There is no bigger pride in a child then when they catch a fish-even if it is relatively small!
Thats what its all about! Nice fish Tegan and what a great memory.
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