Clinics held at Milford and Lovewell reservoirs celebrate June 6-7 Free Fishing Days
PRATT -- The 21st annual Kids’ Fishing Clinic & Derby will be held on June 6 at Milford Reservoir in U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Outlet Park (Gathering Pond) at Shelter #11, located below the lake's dam. This clinic/derby is associated with the 2009 Kansas Wildscape Foundation's OK Kids' Day, which promotes getting kids outdoors and enjoying Kansas natural resources.

The event will be open to the first 100 children who pre-register and are between the ages of 5 and 12 years old. Children may be pre-registered by calling the Corps of Engineers office at 785-238-5714 and dialing 0 for assistance. Parents and/or guardians are required to attend with the younger children. The event is free of charge and will consist of a fishing clinic, a fishing derby, a casting contest, and a Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) shocker boat demonstration.

Check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m. on June 6, and the clinic will start at 9 a.m. The fishing derby and casting contest will run from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., with the shocker boat demonstration at 11:10 a.m. Prizes and packets will be handed out at 11:30 a.m., and a picnic lunch will be served at noon.

Rods and reels and bait will be available for all participants to use, so children do not need to bring their own equipment. Prizes will be awarded to the first and second place finishers in the casting contest for each of the following age groups: 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, and 11-12. All children attending the event will receive a packet of prizes.

This event is sponsored by the Kansas Wildscape Foundation, Geary County Fish and Game Association, Milford Nature Center, Milford State Park, KDWP, Milford Friends Group, and Noon Kiwanis, as well as the Corps of Engineers. For more information, phone 785-238-5714. ext. 3786.

Free Fishing Weekend will also be celebrated with a kids fishing derby at Lovewell State Park on the weekend of June 6 and 7. Fishing licenses are not required to fish any Kansas waters for these two days, but vehicle and camping permits are still required at Lovewell.

The popular Kids' Fishing Derby is set for Sunday, June 7. Lovewell State Park and Wildlife Area staff, along with many area businesses, are sponsoring this annual event. Participants will have the opportunity to win a $200 Don Cart Memorial Savings Bond. The family of Don Cart, former Concordia resident and avid Lovewell area outdoorsman who passed away several years ago, has donated this bond.

Registration is from 8 a.m. to noon at the state park office, and early registration prizes will be awarded to the first 50 kids who register. The weigh-in is set for 3 p.m. at the marina parking lot. Anglers will be divided into two age brackets: 7 and younger, and 8 to 15. Prizes will be awarded for the most pounds of fish and biggest fish in each of the age brackets, plus all participants present at the weigh-in are eligible for prizes drawn at random.

Area businesses and individuals have donated more than $1,000 in prizes and gift certificates for the event. For more information, contact the Lovewell State Park Office at 785-753-4971.
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