Saturday, February 26, 2011

Alexandria’s lake a bountiful spot for fishing

Alexandria’s lake is extra fishy, and people like it that way. With 11,150 fish being added in 2011, the lake has become a destination for people who not only like to fish, but to also catch something.


Alexandria’s lake a bountiful spot for fishing

By Chris Mayhew • NKY.Com : 12:30 pm, Feb 26, 2011

Alexandria’s lake is extra fishy, and people like it that way.

With 11,150 fish being added in 2011, the lake has become a destination for people who not only like to fish, but to also catch something. People line the banks of Alexandria’s lake with regularity to bring their catch of the day to the dinner table because of regular stocking of trout and catfish through a Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife program.

Alexandria’s lake was among the first lakes stocked under the state’s Fishing In Neighborhoods (FINS) program in 2006 that has grown to include 29 lakes across the state.

The lake at Southgate Community Park is the only other state-stocked lake in Campbell County. The state also stocks two ponds at Middleton Mills Park in Taylor Mill, Prisoners Lake in Covington’s Devou Park, and Camp Ernst Lake near Burlington.

Wally Reinhardt of Alexandria set two fishing poles on the ground on either side of a lawn chair during one of his regular trips to Alexandria’s lake on the sunny, but chilly morning of Wednesday, Feb. 23.

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Alexandria resident Wally Reinhart reels in his first trout catch of the day at the Alexandria Community Park lake Wednesday, Feb. 23. Chris Mayhew/Staff

 

Reinhart, a retired teacher for Newport Independent School District, said he often comes to the lake to fish on days when he isn’t called back to be a substitute teacher for the day.

An avid hunter and fisherman, Reinhart said he and a group of friends went to Southgate’s lake after it was stocked with 500 rainbow trout on Feb. 15, and together they caught 15 trout and two channel catfish.

The state stocking program is a benefit for people who like to fish, but it’s also a chance for children to get out and learn to fish in a place where there’s a good chance of catching a fish in a short period of time, he said. People also don’t have to reside in the city or even state to fish, as long as they have a valid fishing license, Reinhart said.

“They want you to catch them and take them home and eat them,” he said.

Reinhart said his family has a fish fry and game feast from his hunting about three or four times a year where everyone is invited, including older members of the family who used to hunt and fish, but still want to enjoy dining on fresh fish.

In less than two hours, Reinhart caught four trout on Feb. 23, one less than the daily legal limit for trout that can be taken with a state license. For catfish, the daily legal limit to take is four.

“If everybody sticks by that, then everybody gets their fair share,” he said.

The trout range in size from about six inches to a foot, and the catfish typically are between 10-15 inches, Reinhart said.

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Denny Ortlieb, of Camp Springs, casts a line into the waters of the lake in the Alexandria Community Park after sitting down for an afternoon of fishing around noon Wednesday, Feb. 23. Chris Mayhew/Staff

 

Denny Ortlieb of Camp Springs, who was also fishing at Alexandria’s lake Feb. 23, said he typically comes to the lake twice a year. Ortlieb said he probably wouldn’t visit if the lake wasn’t stocked because of how accessible it is to the public.

“With it getting fished a lot, it has to be stocked to make it worthy of fishing in,” Ortlieb said.

Alexandria Mayor Bill Rachford said during comments at the end of the Feb. 17 council meeting that the state’s stocking of the city’s lake isn’t something everyone in the city is necessarily aware of.

“So, the people who are out there fishing actually have something to catch,” Rachford said.

Alexandria Community Park lake’s stocking schedule:

• Catfish: March: 1,400; April: 700; May: 1,400; July or August: 1,400

• Trout: February: 1,250; March: 2,500; November: 2,500

Southgate Community Park lake stocking schedule:

• Catfish: March: 400; July or August: 400.

• Trout: February: 500; March 500; Nov. 500.

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Source:

http://cincinnati.com/blogs/campbellcountyconnects/2011/02/26/alexandria-lake-a-bountiful-spot-for-fishing/