TULSA, OK — Have you been thinking about taking the family fishing? It's an Oklahoma tradition with all of our lakes and ponds. But did you know more people are searching for fishing license information right now, than they have in the past four years?
A Harris poll shows 24% of people with kids under 18 are thinking about going fishing during the pandemic. That's almost one in four people.
In this Mindful Moment With Mike, we hear from Stephanie Vatalaro with www.takemefishing.org
"In this time with this pandemic going on, I think it's a great way that people can escape from all the crazy news, get out in nature, and experience some of those health and wellness benefits, and you can go with your little tribe that you've been quarantining with, Vatalaro said. "It's a great activity to do in small groups and you can social distance while you're doing it."
When asked about the mental heath and wellness benefits of fishing, Vatalaro said, "There's a lot of studies out there that say just being near the water does things like lower your blood pressure and heart rate. For kids, spending time in nature is good for their focus and attention, like kids with ADHD. And I think there's a lot of lessons they can learn from it too, right? There's the big one - patience, because you're not always catching fish. It's just a great way to emotionally connect and make memories with your family."
"We've seen a huge increase in demand for fishing information," said Vatalaro. "And one of the things that we do, is we provide our visitors links to their state agencies where they can buy their fishing license. And we've seen almost a 300% increase in that metric alone. Whether it's something you're just starting out or maybe you have a fighing rod lying around and just haven't used it in a couple of years, people are taking this opportunity to pick it up and check it out.:'
You can find more information about where you can go fishing and boating on www.takemefishing.org
