The fish in Cochnewagon Pond in Monmouth had better look out Saturday when area children will try their hands at ice fishing during Jack Traps’ annual youth ice fishing derby.
“It’s all about getting the children outdoors and showing them how to have fun without the electronics,” Jack Traps manager Shawn Norton said Thursday.
The ice fishing outfitter will have free bait and equipment to lend for kids who don’t have their own. Volunteers will drill holes and be on hand to help kids at the event. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife will stock the pond with brook trout.
So far 440 youth have registered for the derby, Norton said.
This derby is not a competition, and there will be no weigh-in, but the stakes will still be high. Participants will be entered into a raffle and have the chance to win a lifetime fishing license.
“When you give a kid a lifetime license, you give them a lifetime gift of outdoor activity,” Norton said.
The derby, which is in its 10th year, started with 40 kids participating. In the early years, only one lifetime license was given away. Ten were offered in the last two years, and this year there will be 20.
Youths who participate will be entered into the raffle to win an assortment of prizes — besides the licenses — including an ice auger, a portable ice shack, traps and baskets. Each child will receive a prize.
The derby will take place from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Monmouth town beach on Beach Road. The derby is free and open to all children, ages 12 and younger, regardless of their hometown. They must be accompanied by an adult and check in. Hot dogs and cocoa will be offered.
Jack Traps started with Tim Jackson making traps as a hobby, and eventually it grew into a business in his basement. The outfitter is entering its 40th year of producing ice fishing traps and selling ice fishing equipment.
Abigail Austin — 621-5631
aaustin@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @AbigailAustinKJ
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