Written By BRIAN LOCKHART

With a lot of activities still restricted or not taking place at all, many people have turned to fishing to get outside and enjoy an afternoon.

While many people have been taking their rod and reel to local water ways for years, others are newer to the sport and just starting to give it a try.

Fishing as a sport has seen an increase across the province this year with conservation areas reporting more people than ever trying their luck at local ponds and lakes.

The Pine River Provincial Fishing Area in Mulmur provides a great outdoor spot to try your luck at catching brook trout and other varieties of fish in the lake.

This hidden gem of a park is located on River Road in Mulmer and is surrounded by a treed area on both sides giving the impression you are on some remote lake up north.

Beckett and Avery came out to the park during an afternoon just to get outside and cast their bait into the lake.

“There's some pretty big fish out there,” Avery summed up as he cast his line into the lake.

His pal Beckett said “I think it's a good fishing area. I'd like to get farther out in the lake because I think there's bigger fish out there.”

The lake was stocked last year with thousands of brook trout.

It was a family day at the lake and Karen brought her son just he could get outside and meet with a friend for a change.

“It's an area that is close to us and safe,” she said. “It's a place we could come with the kids and it's not very busy. We can be respectful of social distancing and still be outdoors and getting some vitamin D.”

Angling provides a great opportunity for some outdoor relaxation while still maintaining social distancing.