Record-Journal 4/2/06

• There will be trout fishing in Baldwin’s Pond this year and by all counts it should be the best it has been in years. Assuming that the DEP will put in their usual stocking into Baldwin’s Pond, this will be supplemented by a pre-season stocking by the Meriden Lions Club.
• The Meriden Lions Club in my estimation has done so much for Meriden residents over the years, and is, was, and always will be one of my favorite civic organizations in our city. However, last year much ado was made by a partial draining of Baldwin’s Pond which runs into Harbor Brook in City Park while the Lions Club was holding their famous “Duck Derby.” Admittedly, some fish were killed in the partial draining, and therefore the Meriden Lions Club will be stocking over 400 trout into Baldwin’s this year for the enjoyment of those who opt to fish there.
• The first stocking will take place April 7, prior to opening day of trout season, which opens 6 a.m. on April 15. For the preseason trout stocking the Meriden Lions Club will be putting in some 300 trout. Then, for the Meriden Lions Club Bicentennial Fishing Derby (May 7) open to children up to 12 years in age, the Lions Club will put in another 100-plus trout into Baldwin’s Pond, and some of them will be the golden rainbows, some 14 inches or better that are such a big hit with both kids and adults. Note: This year the Meriden Lions Club Bicentennial Fishing Derby will be held at Baldwin’s Pond, not in Harbor Brook in City Park. I would have to believe that these two trout stockings will more than make up for any fish that were inadvertently killed in the partial draining of Baldwin’s Pond last year. [by Mike Roberts]