There is a reason people who love fishing get so sentimental about their pastime.

It is an art B次元官网网址� both simple yet infinitely complex B次元官网网址� that teaches profound lessons about how we relate to the planet and to ourselves.

Those rose-coloured memories and the desire to share them with others are driving a new provincial program designed to make it easy for anyone to give fishing a try.

On the West Shore, two fishing supply stores have stepped up to take part in the rod loan program organized by the  Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C.

B次元官网网址淭here was no reason why we wouldnB次元官网网址檛 take part,B次元官网网址� said Coltan Whitman, an employee at West Shore Fishing Centre on Hoffman Avenue.

The 22-year-old has been an avid angler for much of his life and served on a halibut boat off the northern B.C. coast.

B次元官网网址淧ersonally, (sharing his love of fishing) is a huge part for me,B次元官网网址� Whitman said, explaining that anyone who wants to try fishing can come in and borrow a rod and tackle box for one week. A credit card or small deposit is all thatB次元官网网址檚 needed.

At Wise-Buys Fishing Supplies, which opened eight-weeks ago on the Island Highway, the ideal of the rod loan program fits neatly with the focus of the family owned business.

B次元官网网址淢y take on fishing, I think itB次元官网网址檚 a lifeskill,B次元官网网址� said Kimberley Milligan, program coordinator for Wise-Buys.

Milligan, who admits her brother Bill Zaalberg is the fishing expert in the family, said the store wants to attract customers who are trying fishing for the first time.

They donB次元官网网址檛 want anyone to feel intimidated about asking basic questions about getting started.

They havenB次元官网网址檛 yet loaned out any fishing gear but Milligan said she has had a few nibbles. One woman she spoke to was recently widowed with two young sons. She had been into fishing as a child and was taking tentative steps to get back into it for the sake of her boys.

The rod loan program offered her the chance to do it without committing to spending a lot of money.

Of course, both fishing suppliers also know that encouraging people to try fishing is the best way to hook a potential new customer.

At the Hoffman Avenue store, Whitman recalls two boys who borrowed a rod and tackle box because they werenB次元官网网址檛 sure if they afford the gear. After angling at area lakes for a week, Whitman said the boys found the money to buy their own rods so they could keep fishing all summer.

For more information on the Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C.B次元官网网址檚 Rod Loan program, go to GofishBC.com.

editor@goldstreamgazette.com

West Shore Rod Loan locations

B次元官网网址� Wise-Buys Fishing Supplies

102 -1740 Island Hwy, Colwood

B次元官网网址� West Shore Sport Fishing Centre

693 Hoffman Ave., Langford