summer 07

my wife and i go camping has much has posible this summer we got to take one of our nieces she is 5 never been fishing so i baited the hook and helped her throw it out and walked away and told her if it starts to move pull up well she caught her first rainbow man she was happy so was uncle terry a month or more she was with her grandparents and was fishing she was yelling i got one but no one would listen but she had one,two three her inlaws were how do you know how to fish? she told uncle terry told me what to do. her mom called us and told us man i will always remeber that day thanks

Teaching a kid to fish might just be the most rewarding thing you can do.

I spent a week staying with my Aunt, Uncle and their little daughter. At the time my little cousin was only 6 years old. While there I was lucky enough to take her on her first fishing excursion.
The afternoon before the outing I took her in the front yard to get in some casting practice. Her confidence now built up I explained "In the morning you'll have to help me pack the truck. Because, anything worth doing requires a little work." The following moring she was bright eyed and bushy tailed. "Let's pack the truck" she said. Still wondering around trying to wake-up I replied "Ok give me a minute." A quick splash of cold water and I was ready. I walked out the front door to find her attempting to load the gear by her self. With a smirk on my face I asked "You want some help there kiddo?" The gear now stowed away we set off on our trip. There was a pond just a little ways down the road. Once we arrived I set her up on the tailgate, while I set up our rods. Then the floodgates opened, she was asking all kinds of inquisitive questions;
"What's that?" "What's it do?" "How does it work?" All the kinds of things you'd hope a kid would ask to show their interested. And I was more than happy answer them. Rods in hand we set off down the narrow path leading to the pond. The water was relatively clear so it wasn't hard to locate fish along the weedline. I could see excitement building in her eyes as I pointed out the fish. We found a good spot where knelt down beside her and showed her how to bait the hook. Seeing she was about to burst with anticipation I hand back the rod. Her first cast splashed down just outside the weedline. "Now comes the hard part" I explained. "What?" she asked. "Patience, if you can learn that you'll make a fine fisherman." A few minutes later her bobber bounced twice and disappeared. "SET THE HOOK! SET HOOK!" I exclaimed. She did and with some effort she landed the fish. It was a great little bluegill. I took a picture of her and her first trophy fish. After saying our goodbyes we let the fish go. She took a few more casts landing a couple more bluegill. During which I intermitently took some casts telling her what I was doing had how I was doing it. I had set my fly box down on the ground and she was now curiously inspecting it. "What's this?" she asked. I had tossed a couple small, floating Rapla's in my fly box just in case she got bored. With hope see looked at me and asked "Can I use one?" While setting her up with one I explained how to use it. She could cast that thing like a little pro. We both took a few more casts. I was stripping in some line when I heard it "I think I got one Ty." As I was turning and saying "Are you sure?" I saw a bass break the surface with beautiful leap. I quickly drop my fly rod and knelt beside her "SET THE HOOK! AND KEEP OUR LINE TIGHT!" She did and a great battle ensued. Using all the might she possessed she was able to land the great beast. "WOW! What a whale" I told her. It was the nicest 10" largemouth we had've seen. Far better than any 7 or 8 pounder that I ever caught. I took a picture of the two of them, boy she sure looked pleased. And rightly so I thought. She gave him a quick pet on the head and we released the fish to fight another day. "How was that?" I asked her. "That was AWESOME!!" she replied. "Maybe some day we'll catch him when he's bigger or maybe he'll be some kids first bass too." I said. That sounded good to her. The remainder of the day was spent just sort of messing around by the water. She seemed to have a spring in her step when we walked the narrow path back to the truck. On the ride home she said "That was fun." "That's the whole point kiddo, that's the whole point" I replied. For the next couple weeks wether I was going fishing, just looking in the rocks down by the river or simply going through my fishing gear I always had my little buddy Annie there, right by my side.

That was one of the best days of fishing I can remember. One I will always cherish.

I'm with you there, fellas. My Grama & Aunt took me fishin' the very first time. I was maybe 7. Catfishin'.
We slayed em' !! My two cousins, Ben & Sue, all three of us the same age. I been a fisherman ever since.
My Uncle took me next, Striped Bass fishin' on the lower Sacramento river. Awesome times. Saw an old fella one time on the Sacto with a Sturgeon 10 feet long he'd caught usin a whole chicken for bait. I was maybe 10 then. I had no idea there were fish that big til then. Those times I'll never forget. I have three nieces, three nephews, one son, one daughter, three great nieces, three great nephews, and two granddaughters in my life that I've taken fishin' for the first time. I was givin' back what my Grama and Uncle gave me. Those kids gave me more beyond measure than I ever gave. My son is 18 now, and the best fishin partner I ever had. Last summer we had our usual family campout at Burney Falls for a week, and I got to take my Great nieces, and two granddaughters fishin, some for the first time, some for the second. The evening crappie bite was hard and fast, and we could do no wrong. I never wet a line of my own, but we brought in dozens of crappie. We let 'em all go, but the kids still talk about it. Some of those fish have gotten pretty big over the months. They'll remember it the rest of their lives, and so will I......
...........ModocDan

Great stories. My grandfather took me fishing for the first time. I was about 5. I don't remember if we caught fish that day or not but I remember sitting by the pond talking with my grandfather. It was a pretty summer day. I don't have a single memory of what we talked about, but I do remember looking at him thinking he was the greatest man who ever lived.

He passed away a couple years after that when I was 7. I still look back at him and think he was one of the greatest men who ever lived. The Earth became a less kind and gentle a place the summer of 1967.

I haven't thought about him for a while and reading these stories of first fishing experinces brought his face back to my memory. I hope some of him still lives in me. I know I'm a better man today for having known him for the few short years I knew.

Grandpa Skip, thanks for taking a kid fishing.

Jeff