Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition 3814 June 21- July 5 2019 | Page 17

8. 8. William William Land Land Park Park Bus Bus #2,5,6, #2,5,6, 61,62,87 61,62,87 61 61 Cosu Cosu mne mne River s s River Blvd Blvd Cosumnes Cosumnes River River College College 99 99 Sheldon Road Road Sheldon North Laguna Laguna Creek Creek 7. 7. North Since that inaugural event, I have attended over 60 of the program’s events, as well as fishing in a few of them. This program is one that actually increases angling opportunities, rather decreasing them or taking them away as California’s population continues to grow. When I was a kid growing up in Sacra- mento, I had to figure out how to fish in local waters pretty much on my own. I would often travel to the American River by bike to fish for shad, steelhead and striped bass. Nowadays, young and novice anglers have good opportunities to learn about fishing from angling experts in clinics, seminars and workshops provided by government agencies, fishing groups and bait and tackle stores, but no program equals Fishing in the City. This program gives city dwellers opportunities to both learn how to fish and to fish close to Sacramento Sacramento 9 9 2 80 2 80 Arden Way 50 Arden Way 3 3 50 50 Nimbus Nimbus Hatchery Hatchery 4. Mather Regional Regional 4. Mather Park Park 8 8 5 5 160 160 7 7 Rancho Rancho Cordova Cordova Douglas Rd. Douglas Rd. Eagles Nest Rd Eagles Nest Rd Golf Course Golf Course Oaks Blvd Oaks Blvd 4 4 99 99 8 8 12 12 T Th ho om m 83 99 99 83 12th Av Av e e lle R R d d 12th Su Su tt tt er er vi ville Su S tt u e tt r e v r il v le ille R d Rd 5 5 80 80 ZOO ZOO 13 1 th 3th A A ve 160 ve 160 61 61 62 62 1 1 Elverta Rd Elverta Rd d Bl d v som Blv Fo ls l om 50 Fo Rd Rd FISHING NOTES FISHING NOTES Rainbow California Department Fish Wildlife, and Wildlife Rainbow Trout Trout – The – The Department of Fish of and (CDFW), a private hatchery and American the American River Fish through through a private hatchery and the River Fish Hatchery, rainbow trout trout in urban ponds ponds in every Hatchery, plants plants rainbow in urban the winter. and The February. exact schedule and ponds planted changes every every January The exact schedule changes year. Power Eggs, Eggs, nightcrawlers, year. Fish Fish PowerBait, PowerBait, Power Pautzke spinners, Fire Bait, spoons and flies for maximum spinners, success. spoons and flies for maximum nightcrawlers, success. Channel Catfish Catfish – The CDFW stocks with catfish Channel – The CDFW stocks urban urban ponds ponds with channel channel catfish The ponds exact stocked schedule changes every summer. The every exact summer. schedule and changes every every Use year. Use mackerel, nightcrawlers, chicken year. mackerel, anchovies, anchovies, nightcrawlers, chicken liver and liver and baits. prepared prepared For the baits. latest information and schedule, call (916) For the latest information and schedule, contact Joe 358-2872 or go online at: Ferreira: [email protected] • [phone]. https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing-in-the-city/SAC. Sacramento Area Sacramento Area Urban Ponds Urban Lakes Lakes & & Ponds 5 5 Stockton Stockton Lodi Lodi Eight Mile Mile Rd Rd Eight Hammer Lane Lane Hammer 99 99 Harding Way Harding Way 5. Grove Regional Regional Co. Co. Park 5. Oak Oak Grove Park (Not Shown on on Map) Map) (Not Shown Elk Elk Grove Grove Blvd Blvd 61 61 Elk Elk Grove Grove 99 99 2 2 6 6 Lakes & Ponds are Lakes & Ponds are Available By Regional Regional Transit Transit Available By Rio Linda Rio Linda 80 80 3. Hagan Park 3. Hagan Park Bus #1 Bus #1 5 5 99 99 99 99 15 15 9. Southside on Street) Street) 9. Southside Park Park (park (park on Bus #2, 51,56 Bus #2, 15, 15, 38, 38, 51,56 5 5 d Bl d v som Blv Fo ls l om Fo Mather Mather Q Q 56 15 56 15 S 2 S T 2 51 T 51 U Business U Business V V Broa W W 56 Bro d a wa 56 dw y a 2 y 2 X 51 X 51 51 51 38 38 l de fan el Zi f n and n i Z Ch ase as Dr e D r 2. Howe Park Howe Park Bus 2. #20, 22, 23, 87 Bus #20, 22, 23, 87 1. Gibson Ranch 1. Gibson Ranch Bus #19 Bus #19 38 38 20 20 20 20 Ch Cottage Way Cottage Way 23 23 Arden Way American River American River 2387 23 87 El Camino Avenue El Camino Avenue Arden Way Richard Muñoz, who became the coordinator of the Fishing in the City Sacramento area program in October 2017 after the program’s founding coordinator, Joe Ferreira retired, walks around the lake talking to and assisting young anglers. Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff. over, adults can fish also. In spite of Department cutbacks and increasing costs of planting fish, the program has endured. Whereas the program used to stock a number of ponds in the Sacramento area with fish every week, the plants have become less frequent, but more fish are put in during the plants. When I attended the first “Fishing in the City” event at Southside Park in Sacramento in the summer of 1993, I was impressed by the then new program and its mission of actually encouraging young anglers to fish as part of enjoying and appreciating the outdoors and practicing conservation. Joe Ferreira was there with park district officials, the late City Councilman Jimmy Yee and a bunch of kids and some adults after the first plant of channel catfish in the lakes. Elverta Road Elverta Road Overview: The CDFW’s Urban Fishing Program serves Californians living in the Sacramento, San Francisco and Los Angeles metropolitan areas. The program was created in 1993 to improve angling opportunities for California’s growing urban population. Consistent with trends across the country, Califor- nia’s urban anglers identified a lack of free time as the primary reason why they don’t fish more or stopped altogether. Many city and regional park lakes, ponds, and streams were all but forgotten as potential fishing sites and many lacked adequate facilities, staff, or fish to sustain a fishing program. Some suffered from non-source-point pollution and habitat degradation. All were surrounded by communities ready to provide the support necessary to create fishing in the city. The program’s Fishing in the City Clinics gives city dwellers an opportunity to learn how to fish, and to fish close to home. It also gives participants an opportu- nity to borrow rods, bait and tackle through the Tackle Loaner Program. Ponds are stocked with trout in winter and catfish the rest of the year. Anglers 16 years of age and older need to have a fishing license except for on Free Fishing Days. Another outreach program is the Kids in Creeks school-based fishing program in the San Francisco Bay area. In Marin, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, teachers complete a three-day watershed education program followed by a fishing trip. In Santa Clara County, similar programs are available. For information about the Sacramento area Fishing in the City Program,, contact [phone], https://www. wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing-in-the-city/SAC. For information about the Fishing in the City program in the San Francisco and South Bay areas, contact Ethan Rotman: [email protected] • [phone] For general information about the program, go to: https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/fishing-in-the-city Fishing In The City Facts Business Business Dry Creek Dry Creek Road Road 15 June 21 - July 5, 2019 MAP FEATURE VOL.38 • ISS. 14 6. Elk Park 6. Elk Grove Grove County County Park Bus Bus #56 #56 home. planned for June 3 through November In covering Fishing in the City events, 18 to allow park officials time to gather I’ve seen some amazing catches. I’ve public input and create a wildlife protec- seen crappie, huge redear sunfish, brook tion plan. To learn more about the fishing trout and even brown trout caught at Elk moratorium and wildlife protection plan, Grove Park. visit www.yourcsd.com/wildlife. However, none of the catches I’ve witnessed touches the 22 lb. white catfish that James Robinson of Sacramento pulled out of William Land Park Pond in March 1994. That fish is not only the state record, but also a world record for the species, according to the Freshwater Fishing Fall of Fame. The last fishing clinic before the program is revamped will be held on Saturday, July 6, 8:00 a.m. –noon, at Howe Community Park. It is co-sponsored by the Fulton-El Camino Recreation Park District. The event is for 5-15 year-olds only. No pre-regis- tration is required. You can find out the schedule for clinics and lakes being planted by calling [phone] or going online at: https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/ Fishing-in-the-city/SAC. Bill King, President of the California Striped Bass Asso- ciation, Sacramento chapter, was helping out at the clinic with other volunteers. He informed me that Cosumnes Community Services District (CSD) Parks and Recreation Department has placed a moratorium on fishing at the lake in Elk Grove Park after waterfowl have been injured Young Jackson Trafican holds up two of the catfish that or killed by fishing debris left he landed at Hagan Community Park in Rancho Cordova at the park. on June 6. Photo by DAN BACHER, Fish Sniffer Staff. The temporary ban is Photo by Dave Barsi, Oak Run.