New Canaan’s young anglers will descend on Mill Pond Saturday morning for one of the town’s most cherished community traditions—the annual fishing derby.
The fishing derby at Mill Pond in New Canaan. Contributed
Registration will start at 8 a.m. for the popular free event—a competition for special prizes—and fishing will start at 8:30 a.m. The fishing derby is open to kids 15 and younger, and 10-and-unders must be accompanied by an adult.
“We are always so thrilled to see so many families come out together to take advantage of such a beloved event,” said Tucker Murphy, president of the Kiwanis Club of New Canaan. “We really want to thank the Police Benevolent Association. They really stepped to help pay for the re-stocking. Without the help of police, fire and DPW, this event would not happen. They do all the heavy lifting, and we love working with them and partnering with them. We can’t wait. It’s going to be a great day, always is.”
Sponsors include New Canaan Recreation Department with assistance from the Department of Public Works, New Canaan Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Club, Police Benevolent Association, New Canaan Fire Department and local merchants such as Walter Stewart’s Market, Toddlertime Nursery School, Baskin Robbins, Candy Nichols, Cherry Street East, TD Bank, Attorney Sperry DeCew, Joe DiPanni, Ready Construction, Robert DiPanni, Hussey Brothers Excavating, Walbert Capital, Karp Associates, Vineyard Vines, New Canaan Diner, Tombrock Corp. and Joe’s Pizza which will be serving pizza.
Called the George Cogswell Memorial Fishing Derby’ after a former New Canaan Police officer, the event will see budding sportsmen stand at the water’s edge of Mill Pond, stocked with 370 pounds of rainbow trout, and compete in several categories, such the first boy and first girl to catch a fish and the largest fish caught.
The “fish fund” is always looking for private donations to help with the costs of the event. Anyone wishing to help can send a check to the “Fish Management Fund,” Town of New Canaan – Att: DPW Fish Mgmt., 77 Main Street, New Canaan CT 06840.