The Kids Free Fishing Day event is back for the 21st time on June 14 at the Sparks Marina.
The Sparks Rotary Club hosts the event, which is expected to draw as many as 1,200 participants this year. In 2002, the first year it was held, organizers estimate there were about 300 participants.
The event coincides with Free Fishing Day in Nevada, which is the second Saturday every June.
The fishing event is free for all kids 17 years old and younger. All youth must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult. Registration is on site the day of the event, at the southwest side of Sparks Marina. Youth registered for the event may fish at this location without a fishing license.
The Sparks Rotary Club will provide fishing poles and bait. Last year, the club handed out fishing poles to 1,200 children.
There will also be volunteer coaches on hand to help cast and catch fish.
The Nevada Department of Wildlife will stock the marina with more than 7,000 rainbow trout the week of the event.
The south side of the marina will have nets in the water help keep the fish on that side and ensure children can catch a trout more easily.
There is also face-painting, food, and more activities at the free event.
Sparks Marina history
The Sparks Marina site was once part of Nichols Ranch, and later was a gravel pit and former toxic superfund site. The Marina was filled in by a flooding Truckee River in 1997.
In 1987, the gravel pit owned by Helms Construction was discovered to have toxic petroleum products seeping deep into the pit. Superfund designation provided resources to clean up the site, and it was declared clean and free of petrochemicals in 1996 and turned over to the City of Sparks.
The Sparks Marina Lake is continuously recharged with fresh filtered water from an underground aquifer.
Adaptive Day fishing at Sparks Marina
Adaptive day was added when the shore and dock on the south side got so crowded it was difficult for children with special needs to gain access to the marina. This year’s adaptive day is set for June 12.
The Rotary Club invites residents of group homes and students with disabilities to come for a day of one-on-one support.
This smaller event of 80 to 200 kids, along with their parents and caregivers, provides one-on-one time with coaches and an accessible dock.
Just like the June 14 event, each kid gets a pole already strung and ready for fishing. They get a free lunch, drinks and instruction. No fishing license is required for the children that day. The club provides nets so the fish don’t head out to the deeper areas of the marina.
More than 8,500 trout were stocked in the Marina
More than 8,500 trout were stocked in the Sparks Marina on Wednesday, in preparation for Free Fishing Day on Saturday.
Jim Krajewski, [email protected]
Sparks Kids Free Fishing Day details
Who: Kids 17 years and younger must be accompanied by a guardian
When: General Public Youth Event: June 14, 2024, 7-11 a.m.; registration opens at 6 a.m.
Where: Sparks Marina, southwest side
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