ARKANSAS, USA — You may go over the river and through the woods this Thanksgiving to get to grandma's house, but you don't need to go that far if you want fish for your Thanksgiving feast.
The Arkansas Game & Fish Commission is renewing its tradition of restocking ponds that give city slickers first dibs close to home.
"If we don't put the fish in the ponds here in the city, you would have to travel at least two-and-a-half hours to actually fish for them," said Maurice Jackson, the AGFC coordinator of the family fishing program. "It makes it more convenient."
For 20 years, Jackson and others have been bringing fish to the masses, or at least the ones handy enough to work the rod and the reel. You'll need a higher power if you're looking for loaves. It sets aside some three dozen ponds and lakes for kids and seniors.
Just in time for Thanksgiving, AGFC stocks them with rainbow trout.
"I mean, you think about rainbow trout. Most people think, 'oh, I got to go out to the Midwest and fish a stream' or something like that," said Jackson. "But hey, it's convenient to have them here in the cities."
It's so popular, AGFC are providing a more stout trout these days.
"We increased the size of our fish," Jackson said. "That's something that's very important because anglers want a larger fish."
The full list of lakes and ponds can be found here, including daily limits and dates for their most recent restocking.