TROUT ARE TO SWIM AGAIN WITHIN BISHOP CITY LIMITS : NEW PROGRAM WILL ALLOW KIDS TO BIKE AND WALK TO FISHING HOLES.

Byline: Rob Wheat Special to the Daily News

Mike Seefeldt remembers the first time he got fishing fever.

He was 7-years-old in 1953 when he went fishing along Bishop Creek with his father. The fish weren't biting, and Seefeldt was getting restless as morning closed in on lunchtime.

A Department of Fish and Game truck appeared to make its regular trout plant, and Seefeldt's eyes grew large as he watched hundreds of pounds of fish being stocked in the creek.

The young boy thought his father arranged the entire thing.

``I was a pointy-headed little kid with flappy ears and here I was fishing and they drop them right in front of me. I mean, there is God, you know,'' said the Bishop native, now 52 and assistant manager of the Mount Whitney and Black Rock state fish hatcheries.

The DFG plants in the immediate Bishop vicinity were discontinued in the 1970s because of budget cuts. Since then, Bishop children haven't been able to have a similar experience to Seefeldt's.

So he did something about it. Seefeldt arranged for 2,000 rainbow trout, including about 300 trophy-size fish, to be planted in Bishop this trout season within the canal on East Line Street and at Williams Creek - the North Fork of Bishop Creek on Highway 6. The sites are a half-mile from Bishop's thoroughfare, Highway 395, and fed by Bishop Creek and the Owens River. A third planting site, in the Dixon Lane canal, may be added later.

Seefeldt is more than a little pleased that a 2-1/2-year push to resume stocking in and around Bishop's city limits will foster new memories for some children.

``I was very sad to see that there wasn't a place where a kid could go fishing just by walking or biking,'' he said. ``We spend thousands and thousands of dollars on urban programs. . . and they're great programs, but we've turned our backs on the youth in the local area. It made me a little mad.''

Bishop's Howard Cleland grew up fishing with Seefeldt and is glad that the experiences they had can be had again.

``It's really something for a young man to be able to go out and bring back something his family can be proud of,'' Cleland said. ``In those days, a trout you could catch around here would mean a meal. Of course there were also a lot of wild fish there, but I really think Mike's plan will be a positive thing.''

Bishop resident Tammy Allen is exciting her sons Matt, 15, and Tim, 13, will have something else to look forward to after school.

``I feel much better having them walk along a creek, then along a sidewalk,'' Allen said. ``It's great that they'll have a real-life alternative to pull them away from the video games.''

Seefeldt, whose childhood fishing gear included toeless tennis shoes and cutoff shorts, said that was exactly the point to his dream of restocking the area creeks.

``Have you ever seen a child's eyes when he catches a fish?'' said Seefeldt. ``How do you describe something like that? I found biological reasons, ecological reasons, homeowner reasons . . . other positive reasons as to why planting would work, why it would be good.

``But the main reason (for me) is to give something back to the kids and to the community that was so good to me when I was young.''

MAKE IT EASY ON THE YOUNG ONES

Recommendations to consider when introducing children to angling:

Have fun: Don't worry about technique or the size of fish; for some kids, a trophy-size trout might too scary to deal with.

Keep it simple: Your child just wants to spend time with you, so don't make a big production. Children can take only so much information; the more complicated you make it, the more frustrated they'll get.

Make it an adventure: Planning is key to any trip. So, even if nothing's biting, have a good time buying fishing licenses, studying the map, reading fishing magazines, digging for worms, making a picnic lunch, stopping in for an ``angler's breakfast'' at your favorite haunt and checking out the tackle shop.

Safety first: It's absolutely essential to teach your child a deep respect for water. Use fishing trips to rehearse what to do in case of an emergency. Insist each boater wear a life jacket all the time. There are more comfortable alternatives to bulky jackets; consider more streamlined personal floatation devices that don't scrimp on quality.

Limited attention: Kids have short attention spans, so plan ahead, check the weather forecast and look for a fishing hole that has a playground and rest rooms that are easily accessed.

Handling fish: Don't force the child to touch the trout or remove the hook; they might be intimidated. Do it for them; imitation can often be the best teacher.

Quick success: For some youngsters, good luck early on can hook them for a lifetime. Inquire with tackle shops about the most sure-fire spots.

Keep or release, always praise: Let children decide whether to take the fish or return it to swim again. Give them the chance to show off the prize at home; instruct how to carefully release a trout, if that is what they wish. Either way, heap on plenty of kudos for learning a new skill.

Capture the memories: Take plenty of snapshots and keep your child's first fishing license and lure. Encourage children to start a fishing photo album or to frame a picture of them and the catch for all to admire.

- Source: Heaton and Johnson Reels.

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

PHOTO A new planting schedule at Williams Creek, above, and other waters in Bishop makes trout more immediately accessible to city residents for the first time since the 1970s.

Brett Pauly/Daily News

BOX: MAKE IT EASY ON THE YOUNG ONES (see text)