LAKE VERMILION— Here’s a test question that almost any area student is likely to get right: “What’s more fun, a day at school or a day out ice-fishing?”
For about 70 elementary age students from Nett Lake, Tower-Soudan, and North Woods, the answer was obvious, thanks to the Lake Vermilion Guides League and Fortune Bay Resort Casino, who teamed up last week to offer a day out on the ice to the area students.
“We just want to introduce the kids to ice fishing and give them a little winter break,” said local fishing guide Cliff Wagenbach, who volunteered for the event. Students from Nett Lake and Tower-Soudan enjoyed their day of fishing on Tuesday, Feb. 11, while the North Woods students took their turn the following day.
The event is part of a continuing effort by both the guides league and Fortune Bay to introduce more young people to fishing. Resource managers have become increasingly concerned in recent years over the trend of declining participation by young people in traditional outdoor activities, like hunting and fishing. Events like Take a Kid Fishing, or Take a Kid Deer Hunting, have become important ways of introducing young people to these types of activities, in hopes that these traditions will carry on to future generations.