Teaching Kids...

[Eric F]

So this weekend my family went on our first backpacking trip since before we had kids, they're 7 and 9 now. We went to Winnemucca Lake out of Carson pass and the fishing was pretty slow. We had fun but due to that lack of good fishing we packed up Sunday morning and drove down to the silver fork of the American at the Caples creek trailhead. I spent some time with my 9 y.o. son teaching him how to fly fish and in under an hour he had hooked and landed a fish all by himself.

So while that went well I wondering what the right way to do this is... How about my 7 y.o., I'm afraid that the coordination required might be too much, does anyone have any tips or tricks? I did some googling of this site and didn't see too many hits on this topic. Am I trying to start them too young?

Also does anyone mind sharing some good spots to start out that has eager fish regardless of size? The silver fork seemed pretty decent but the terrain can be a little challenging at times. Right now our plan is to head back up there on Saturday, hike in a ways and backpack/camp and fish for the weekend but I'm open to any ideas that involve getting out of the valley heat this weekend! :)

Thanks guys!

-Eric

[Troutstalker55B]

My dad started me at the age of 7 and it was not a problem for me. The first thing he taught me was to false cast properly on the lawn, I had to land the fly in the middle of a hoola hoop, then a frisbee. Once I was able to do such then I could hit the water with him. You'll want to take your kids to fisheries that have eager trout and pocket water. With pocket water, the casts are short, and teaches them how to obtain a proper drift, hook setting, playing the fish, and the right way to release them. The North Fork Yuba River would be a great example.

The most important thing is to keep it fun. Children have short attention spans so you have to mix it up. Last week I had a 6 year old as my client and it was all about doing different things on the river. Fish for 20 minutes, then hunt bugs, throw rocks in the river, collect cool looking rocks, then back to fishing for a while. He only lasted 2 and a half hours, and then he wanted to go back to camp with his dad.

Thanks to awesome dads like you who want to introduce their children to the natural world, it's the gift of a lifetime! - J.

[Eric F]

I have to ask, did you also have a non-6 year old client? Or were you just a well paid baby sitter? :)

Just how rough would it be on my line to have them practice on my gravel yard. We live in the country and don't have nice green lawns to cast on. I could of course go to town, but that adds to the overhead a fair amount and means it won't happen.

What would I attach as the fly? Just clip the hook off an old one?

Funny story - While my son and I were flyfishing yesterday my daughter comes over and says she and mom need some help. OK that is odd, mom is very comfortable in the wilderness. Well it turns out that my daughter had managed to hook mom with a Mepps spinner treble hook through her shirt and into her bra strap in the back. Luckily there was no flesh involved but that was something mom couldn't quite fix by herself. :)

[Troutstalker55B]

I have to ask, did you also have a non-6 year old client? Or were you just a well paid baby sitter? :)

Just how rough would it be on my line to have them practice on my gravel yard. We live in the country and don't have nice green lawns to cast on. I could of course go to town, but that adds to the overhead a fair amount and means it won't happen.

What would I attach as the fly? Just clip the hook off an old one?

Funny story - While my son and I were flyfishing yesterday my daughter comes over and says she and mom need some help. OK that is odd, mom is very comfortable in the wilderness. Well it turns out that my daughter had managed to hook mom with a Mepps spinner treble hook through her shirt and into her bra strap in the back. Luckily there was no flesh involved but that was something mom couldn't quite fix by herself. :)

The six year old's dad was with us, there may have been some babysitting involved while he fished.

Casting onto gravel would be a bad idea and will chew up your fly line, another option is to lay a big tarp over the gravel and cast off of the tarp's surface.

You can clip the hook off, or tie in a small piece of brightly colored yarn.

That is a funny story, glad there was no flesh piercing involved!

[jersey]

Pick up a small beater rod for the little ones. My son used a small, 6.5 foot 4 wt and a really cheap line. Have them used that line as the yard caster. My was "the street line". It's cracked and ripped, but it only ever sees the asphalt.

Roll casts and blue gill are great starters.

[chapmag]

Tenkara.

Sounds exotic, but it's simply a super light collapsible graphite rod. A fixed length of ~20# monofilament is the fly line, tied directly to the tip of the rod. 3' or 4' of 5x or 6x tippet connects the end of the "line" to a dry or a dry/dropper or a light single nymph.

The "line" is light enough and the rod long enough that even little ones can keep the "line" off the water and get a drag free drift. The long rod also allows one to pulse the fly to entice fish.

No line management, no futzing with a reel. In open streams without overhanging trees or willows, it's easy, fun, and very effective. I suspect it would work well with bluegills in ponds too.

And cheap compared to rod/reel/line. Maybe $100 for rod, another $20 for "line", tippet, a few flies.

Good luck!

[Bob Loblaw]

I've been teaching my 10 year old daughter this year and she is picking it up pretty quickly. She hates being coached or told what to do, so I try to fish next to her and let her watch and copy. She is mending line and getting pretty good drifts, and she is now fishing 2 fly rigs under an indicator which I was dreading...thinking I'd be untangling messes all day, but she figured that out quickly too.

We sent her to the kids camp at Antelope Creek Ranch for a week this summer which she loved. If you want to drop a few bucks, its a great way to get them excited about fly fishing. She is now tying flies (San Juan worms only) and selling them to me for a buck a pop.

[Eric F]

That camp looks really cool, I'll have to check into that for next summer. Heck, I think I want to sneak away with my wife to that place for a weekend! :)

As for the Tenkara suggestion, where is the best place to get that? Does Kiene have it or are we talking internet? I'd actually considered it, but was waiting for someone to suggest it first.

[Bob Loblaw]

The camp is awesome. Kids all loved it and they teach casting, entomology, fly tying, knots, and they have a lot of fun too. The ponds are full of big fat dumb fish (my daughter's description not mine) and there are wild fish in the creek. Its a bit out of the way but if your kid is into fly fishing its a great treat.

Take your wife to Clearwater Lodge if you want to get away for a weekend!...My wife gets me a weekend every year for Christmas and I made the mistake of taking her up for a "look see" a few weeks ago (on our way to Antelope Creek as a matter of fact) and she fell in love with the place. My bachelor trips are over!


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[chapmag]

Tenkara rods are on the Internet unless Kiene's started stocking them. They're popular in Utah and Idaho and Colorado. Not as popular here - I've not seen another tenkara rod on a CA river or stream.

I use 14# colored Amnesia for the "fly line", 5x mono tippet, and flies like Elk Hair Caddis and small Pheasant Tail nymphs/soft hackles. Kiene's carries those.

[John H]

I had a pram and we went a few times up to Manzanita Lake in Lassen National Park and trolled a sinking line. Great place to camp and the kids I took always caught a fish. I would get the line out and let them hold the rod while I rowed. When they got a fish on I could keep pressure on the line with rowing speed while they reeled it in. The fish come out of the weeds in the evening and can be caught trolling. During the day they are much harder to catch. There are hiking trails, a museum and a store with ice cream so there is plenty to do. At 6000' it is a cool spot also.

[Ed Wahl]

Eric, for that age group you need success. Lot's of it. I suggest ponds and Bluegills. I see you're in Sutter Creek, should be lot's of small ponds around. Most ranches in the foothills have multiple ponds, and they all have panfish. Walk the banks, have the kids lower flies into any holes in the weeds or algae mats, they WILL get bit. You can also have them do easy casts to slightly farther targets with the expectation of a hit at any time. It's a barrel of laughs too. I've got spots around Sac but nothing in your area, but if you need to come here I can put you onto some here. Ed

[StevenB]

That camp looks really cool, I'll have to check into that for next summer. Heck, I think I want to sneak away with my wife to that place for a weekend! :)

As for the Tenkara suggestion, where is the best place to get that? Does Kiene have it or are we talking internet? I'd actually considered it, but was waiting for someone to suggest it first.

We have the Patagonia/TFO Tenkara rods at the Ted Fay fly shop here in Dunsmuir.

[Eric F]

Actually Ed, I own several of those small stock ponds and none of them have fish. :) If you have some ponds you'd be willing to share I'd really appreciate it (PM is fine if you want to keep it off of google searches).

This weekend we actually went backpacking again up to caples creek... The packing part was less successful than last weekend, but the fishing was a little better. My son and I each caught 5-6 little rainbows in a couple hours of trying but my wife and daughter were both skunked, but fished less time and in what turned out to be less productive spots.

I remember fishing for bluegill as a kid with spinner at my grandmothers mobile home park on clearlake. We caught a ton of them! I can't wait to share this experience with my kids. :)

-Eric

[Larry S]

Wow,
A post from Ed Wahl. That must have been one helluva road trip. Kiene regulars miss your humor and
insight.
Hope to see more!
Best,
Larry S
San Diego

[Larry S]

A great gift for the newbie fly guy/gal is Sheridan Anderson's "Curtis Creek Manifesto." $10 or so.
Been around since the 1970's. Written in a comic book style; but apropos for ages 5 to 95.
Think Kiene stocks it; or try Amazon.
Best,
Larry S
Sun Diego

[Ed Wahl]

Erik, the closest to you I can think of off hand is a great one for kids. Cameron Park pond. Tons of fish. I'd be surprised if they don't come up with a few Bass also. Plenty of room for back casts. Not too many fly eating trees either. I think it costs like 5 bucks to get in, you can google it to make sure. Bring a grill and do a picnic. Bring Wooley Buggers.

Hi Larry, yeah it's been awhile. I had to hit my reset button.

Ed

[Ed Wahl]

A great gift for the newbie fly guy/gal is Sheridan Anderson's "Curtis Creek Manifesto." $10 or so.
Been around since the 1970's. Written in a comic book style; but apropos for ages 5 to 95.
Think Kiene stocks it; or try Amazon.
Best,
Larry S
Sun Diego
+1 Best beginner book out there.