Anglers celebrate Family Day weekend on the ice at Dominion Park in Saint John, N.B.

New Brunswick anglers joined the Dominion Park Ice Fishing Association to drop a line into the frozen water on Sunday

Hundred of people participated in the annual Family Day event at the Dominion Park ice fishing village where dozens of fishing shacks have made their home for the winter.

“We are small here, and we don’t have a huge footprint,” says Dominion Park Ice Fishing Association Chair Chris Hardt. “But we do have a bunch of friendly people, and we do our best to make sure everybody has a good time.”

Fishing was the focus of the day but the event also featured an educational aquarium talk about ice fishing in the area, prize draws and freshly caught cooked smelt. People also had the opportunity to donate to the West Side Food Bank.

Experienced and first-time anglers were doing their best to reel in big fish, including veteran fisherman Jonathan Connell.

“It’s been a great year this year,” Connell says. “It’s a great afternoon, weather is great, and it’s great seeing all the kids out here that’s the main thing.”

Maxime Duguay was one of those kids. He wasn’t having much luck catching fish but he said he was still enjoying the day on the ice.

“I plan on catching a whole bunch to trade them in for some fried ones,” he says. “I get to have some awesome food. I get to ice fish. It’s just so much fun.”

Some of the kids were taking advantage of the resources to learn to ice fish. Brenda Graham is the commissioner for the local beavers, cubs, and scouts group. She says the kids have been itching to try ice fishing.

“They absolutely can hardly wait to get here,” says Graham. “We have 17 here right now so we’re doing really well. Everybody’s excited and they haven’t even caught a fish yet.”

Hardt says the anglers that call the fishing grounds home are always happy to help someone learn the tricks of the trade.

“It’s a great place to come learn how to fish,” he says. “There’s lots of little experts here. And if you find the right day and you got somebody friendly next to you, you can learn about fishing.”

During the family day weekend, the province of New Brunswick allows people to fish any open waters without a license. Hardt says the fishing village is located on tidal waters, so people are allowed to fish without a licence any time.

For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.