Ice fishing - the starting shot for the " Friluftslivets år" in Lessebo municipality

The municipality of Lessebo arranged in partnership with Save the Children ice fishing, an activity within Lessebo municipality's project " Friluftslivets år". Ice fishing is carried out in collaboration with Sensus Studieförbund, Första steget, Hus i Hovmantorp, Skrufs IF and SKF Spinn. Ice fishing is just the first activity of many. The collaboration around Friluftsliv will continue throughout 2021. Nicklas Solhäll, who is the project manager for Friluftslivets år, is looking forward to many more collaborations with the municipality's associations regarding various activities.

- Based on the season, we will arrange different types of outdoor activities around the municipality, he says. Hopefully it can give the associations more active members and thus contribute to more municipal residents meeting and getting out into nature. The unfamiliar nature visitor is the focus of the project, but everyone is welcome to our activities!

The project aims to encourage people to enjoy nature and participate in various activities. The interest in trying ice fishing has been great the first two sports holiday days. The tour started on Monday in Krokegköl in Kosta, continued on Tuesday to Lessebo where about 30 children and young people and as many adults participated.

- So far, the catch has consisted of about ten pike and a few perch. But the most important thing is not the catch itself, but that so many have experienced winter fishing for the first time. There have been both completely inexperienced fishermen, as well as those who fished a lot, but never through the ice. And the ages she guesses have been ranging from about 2-60 years. says Maja Söderberg, from Save the Children.

Many families participated with their children, some practiced fishing, while others enjoyed the warmth, drinking coffee, and talked around the campfire.

- For us at Save the Children, this is a perfect way to be able to run a business in Corona times, says Maja Söderberg. But I also think that the benefits of meeting outside are great even if there has been no pandemic. Save the Children will now also start up parent groups which will also be located outdoors. You talk well around the campfire or on a walk, says Maja. And precisely through a broad local collaboration between associations, the municipality, preferably also companies, etc., I think we can achieve a lot, she concludes.