Long before the sun came up on March 1, a line of headlights illuminated the entrance to Maramec Spring Park. The long-awaited opening day of catch-and-keep trout season had arrived.

Beginning at 4 a.m., a steady stream of cars that would continue throughout the day rolled through the gates as anglers from across Missouri prepared to claim their spots.

Retired hatchery manager Skip Doak fired the cannon off at 6:30 a.m. and fishermen made their first casts. The season had officially begun.

The park sold a total of 1,308 tags for the day, 1,104 of which were for adults and 204 of which were for youth.

Minutes after the cannon, Lake Smith, of Edgar Springs, came running up to the St. James Chamber of Commerce tent with a trout in hand to claim the prize for first fish caught by a youth for the third year in a row.

Tom Eickhorst, of Devils Elbow, won the prize for first fish caught by an adult male and Erin Parsons, of St. James, won the prize for first fish caught by an adult female.

Parsons also took the prize for the largest fish caught by an adult female, with her catch weighing in at one pound, six ounces.

Bill Cooper, of St. James, won the largest fish caught by an adult male with a four pound, four ounces catch and Owen Schroer, of Warren County, won the largest fish caught by a youth with a one pound, one ounce catch.

The largest stringer caught by an adult male weighed in at five pounds, seven ounces and was caught by Jordan Dircus of Washington.

The largest stringer caught by an adult female weighed five pounds, eight ounces and was caught by Linda Dunn of St. James.

Camden Parsons, of St. James, won the largest stringer caught by a youth with his three pound, one ounce catch.

The Missouri Department of Conservation kept the stream well-stocked for the day with 5,000 trout, 25 of which were lunkers.

The St. James Chamber of Commerce served coffee, hot chocolate and donuts and the Trout Fraternity assisted with parking throughout the day. The Typsy Gypsy food truck was also at the park.

Tags continue to be available for purchased at the park entrance and cost $5 for adults and $3 for ages 15 and under. Missouri residents ages 16 through 64 are also required to have a fishing permit, which can be purchased online at the Missouri Department of Conservation website or at the park entrance. Annual permits cost $13 and daily permits cost $9. 

Parking is $7 per car, and season passes can be purchased for $70.

The park’s March fishing hours run from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. until daylight saving time, when they will change to 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The park is open an hour before the siren everyday.

The daily limit for the park is four fish and the possession limit is eight fish. Most of the park’s fish are rainbow trout, which have no size limit to keep. Brown trout are also available, but must be 15 inches or larger to keep.

Maramec Spring Park’s next fishing event will be on May 16, which is kid’s free fishing day for ages 15 and under.

The season runs through Oct. 31, after which catch-and-release season begins.