raising a fishing buddy

[caniretireyet?]

Good morning,

As the proud parent of an 8 day old son, I have a question. How have all of you been successful/unsuccessful in ushering your kids/grandkids into the world of fly fishing/fishing? I have largely been a flop with the prior 3, ages 18, 14, and 11. I really want to create a fishing buddy out of number 4, who I can assure you is the last one! (His nickname isn't Medicare for nothing.

Thanks in advance for your help, and feel free to send donations to the college fund.

Steve

[BillB]

Sorry Steve I have already contributed to three college funds and a fourth for my grand daughter! Unfortunately our kids are exposed to the everyday world of the influences of the dark side. I didn't have to compete with xbox. I think you have to move slowly and gently "training" the little ones, which I am attempting with my three grand sons now. My fishing buddies are grown women now and are so busy they don't have much time for that sort of thing. I am thinking one is showing a spark of interest again after she saw the pic of a fish I nabbed the other day. I sure hope so, she's a hoot! I do have many memories of the girls fishing the Mc Cloud, the Kings and the beach.

Good luck Steve.

[Hairstacker]

Steve, I'm kind of in the same boat you are -- I have (2) 17 year-old sons (twins), a 14-year old daughter, and now a 3-year old daughter, and I am doing my best to do everything right with the 3-year old.

What has worked for me so far is to try to wire it into her neurons that she is a fisherman and that's what we do. Along these lines, I taught her to identify the trout and warmwater fish species before she could count to 5, and I started taking her baitfishing for catfish on the Delta on a very regular basis as soon as she turned 3 and was old enough to reliably follow instructions. I picked this venue because there's pretty good action, the potential of a big fish, and it's free. I try to make her a part of everything as much as possible -- she has made friends with the proprieter of the local baitshop, she has her own pole, fishing hat, and fishing vest, and we make our own doughbait together. When we go, we take plenty of snacks and drinks and keep sessions relatively short (less than 3 hours).

It's a work in progress but it seems to be working so far, as she asks me to take her fishing every day . . . in fact, while I was editing this message, she told me it's not raining so we should go fishing today. :D

Yeah, it has definitely cut into my fly fishing time, as I did less this year than I can remember, but I expect these efforts to pay priceless dividends in the future. :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/DSCF1764.jpg

[Darian]

This thread sure brings back some fond memories.... :nod: BUT, you guys are DOOMED!!!!! :eek:

[jbird]

There is no guarrantee. My best advice is to not push it on him, and be interested in what HE is interested in. If he really craves spending time with you, he'll want to go fishing. But even thats no guarantee. Just love him and it will turn out as good as possible.

[Tony Buzolich]

I'm about as close to being a grandfather as anyone can get. My daughter-in-law was due to deliver our first grandson on Thanksgiving Day and still nothing yet!

Every time I see a little one I ask my wife "How old is he or she?" All I can think about is how long do I have to wait beore I can start them fishing. Looks like Mike (Hairstacker) has got it just right,,,,,,,,3 years. Perfect!

Get them going on something that is a for sure catch (bluegills, catfish, baby stripers,etc.). Use bait, doughballs, whatever, but make sure they're having FUN. And every chance you get to take them outdoors do it in a heartbeat. Show'um nature, let them look under rocks. Get down on your hands and knees with them and be a kid again.

I can't go back now and do it all over again with my two kids, but you can bet I'm going to do twice as much of it with my grandson,,,,,,,,,,,,,if he ever comes?
TONY

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

We went the spinning and spincasting way with our grandkids to get them started.

We have 5 grandkids with the only girl being the serious fisher of the group.

We used a bobber with a wooley bugger below because when they are younger they just want to cast and retrieve. No watching a bobber with a worm......too slow for them.

Another way for us was a floating small Rebel or Rapala minnow lure that would float after they stopped cranking.

Warm water ponds in the spring and summer are a good bet.

Pay ponds like the Big M Ranch out near Lincoln are good too.

http://www.bigmfishery.com/

[mar]

do as much scouting as you can, that way you can almost guarantee a no-skunk day when you take the kids out. I always use that as an excuse to sneak out and it's worked so far. :-)

Bluegills, small stripes, anything that's easy to fool and plentiful. Local parks in the spring and early summer are good places to start. That way, the little one can run around and play while you try to locate some fish. (keeping an eye on them, of course). Once you get the fish dialed in, let him/her have at it. Cooler full of snacks and a bag of toys/games are essential. A trip to the ice cream shop afterwards is an excellent bribe.

Too cold out there for my little one now, but once it warms up a bit, we'll be at it again.

[Greg F]

I agree with you all, snacks are a must, scouting or pre-fishing helps, blue gill ponds for sure. Quit when they get bored and do something else for fun so they will still want to go fishing with you again. I started the boys, now 9 & 11, out with good spinning rods (no tangles due to crummy reels) but their rods got "lost" a couple years ago and all I had were fly rods for them to use. Found a local blue gill pond and bribed the owner so we could fish there and they got hooked on bluegills. took them to a private warm water fishing ranch and brought the BB guns for when they got bored. Took them to lakes with good trout populations and they had a great time. When they tire of fishing there are bugs and frogs and bird nests to look for. We'll see what happens as they get older, though. I just hope I planted the seed.

[huntindog]

as with any other part of raising a child the key is to inspire them but not push them too hard. I see this problem in many of things we take part in...the overbearing little league dad, the crazy music loving parents etc. who force their hobies on the kids...pretty soon the kids despize the thing that you want them to love. Make fishing fun...the bottom line is if you want a fishing partner then take him fishing, go to sportsman shows, talk about fishing with him, but if they start to resist a little ease off the throttle. I have a 9 year old that outfishes me sometimes now..he loves the sport...my 3 year old is starting to beg to go fishing too. I would never push it on them but I have a great time with them when we go and the fishing is merely a portal into their lives. We talk alot about lots of differnt things when we fish and we enjoy each others company while we fish, it is important to remember that your fishing will not be as good when you are with your child...you may not be able to go as far off the beaten path or to fish as long as you would when you are alone...dont get frustrated, dont let not catching fish get in the way of making the fishing trip a quality family event. Having access to bluegill and bass ponds does help. Pretty soon you will have pics like this one.

[thekid]

a creek with lots of fish, and dry flies. I was hooked from day 1! o ya and a good teacher or teachers really helps.
Waiting til a later age helped me i think. ya I went fishing in the early years up til then, but you just don't remember those years. By 12 me and Ebac were hitchhiking and camping alone we were so hooked! Having someone their age to fish with is huge. Good luck though. Today's technology makes it hard for a kid to get away from a tv.

the kid

[Fochetti]

I am not a father but a son of a fly fisherman. My best advice is to not force it on to him. Get him out when he is willing and take him to places that there is a good chance of him catching fish at first. Make it enjoyable and don't constantly correct him on what he is not doing correctly. I read in another post to start him on spinning or bait and think that is a great idea. Make it fun and simple, then let him try your fly rod once in a while. Another thing is to keep it light, not ten hours of fishing. What I mean is do other things wile out on the water. Look for bugs or build sand castles, something else he can start to appreciate about being out in nature.

Don't get frustrated when he gets to the age that friends and partying are more important. I went through a period in High School and college where they were much more important. However, I came back to fly fishing and would much rather spend a day out on the water with my father.

Hope this helps and good luck with the new fishing buddy.

[harryls]

Lots of good advice from previous posters, but I could add a couple things to avoid. Mistake #1: Killing fish. I took my 5 year old son to a Sonoma County winery farm pond to fish for bass and bluegill. We were told to toss the bluegills, since they were over populating the pond. Killing pretty little fish just didn't work. C & R rules. Mistake #2: Being more concerned about my fishing than his. As hard as I tried, I couldn't keep focused on my son's fishing when the hatch was on. Best bet is to leave your rod in the car. Mistake #3: Letting your kids see you have a near death experience when fly fishing. While wading in the upper Sac, I had a fish on and when I went for my net in my back vest pocket, my wallet, for some dumb reason, flopped into the water. I dove head first and caught it with my left hand and held onto the rod and the fish with my right. I then spun around and floated downstream a ways on my back and made it to the bank with my hands full and the fish still on. Funny now, but to a little kid watching from the bank ...
Actually what really worked well happened just this summer with my grand nephews who are 9 and 13. I took them to the Little Truckee where they learned a little about casting and such but caught no fish. I suggested to their dad who doesn't fish that we get a guide. Mike Wier, in fact took us to the E Carson and we let a pro do his thing. Their dad paid for a half day and the kids and I each learned a lot and caught fish. Mike pointed out a hog hiding under a boulder and I cast unsuccessfully for 10 minutes without a touch. Mike asked if he could give it a try and 2 casts later: Major hog - 23 in bow! I'll try to attach it.
Anyway just have fun. My son and I are really close and he loves climbing mountains in the snow and boarding down and I love fly fishing. I still am trying, though.

[Tony Buzolich]

Well, he finally arrived, my first grandson. Here he is only one day old. My new fishing buddy. He's already got a grip that I'm sure will hold a fly rod in a few years too. Hopefully I'll be around long enough to pass on all of these good ideas you guys have come up with.
TONY
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b320/buzolich/AndrewMichaelBuzolichemail.jpg

[caniretireyet?]

Congrats, Tony-- your grandson and my son need to meet! (I arranged a marriage for him with an older woman today-- she's 4 months.)
Steve

Thanks also to all of you who offered advice on this thread.

[Darian]

Hey, Hey!!!! Congrats on the Grandson, Tony....:D Good lookin' young guy. :nod: