Full disclosure: Taking kids fly fishing is work.
You’re not going to be fishing. You’re going to be untangling monofilament and dodging poppers. The time spent getting ready to go fishing is incredibly disproportional to the time spent actually fishing. And heaven help you if the fish aren’t biting.
Taking kids fly fishing is an investment. A little here, a little there, all managed with patience and grace and love will pay off in ways that are much deeper than an excuse to go fishing in the future. Plus, kids know what you like to do. For that reason, these are the things that they want to do. Taking them fishing is the ultimate dad/mom/grandpa/cool uncle move.
But how do you do that?
Since we all love lists, here are three articles with lists about getting the kids in your life into fly fishing. (Full disclosure: one list is 100 items long…)
This might be one of my favorite posts ever. It is a quick read, and is a list of questions like…
“How do I reel it in?
“Is it a shark?
“Are there sharks in here?
“Do sunfish have teeth?
“Are sunfish poisonous? Read more here.
5 Reasons Why Your Kid Needs His/Her Own Fly Box
My boys had fly boxes before either of them cast a rod or landed a trout. I bought a cheap box and put a few random flies in it. The next time we went to a fly shop, a big box outdoor store, or an expo show, they each got to pick out a few more bugs. The trips out and the quantity of flies add up. Believe it or not, they accumulate flies at a faster rate than they lose them in trees.
Most of all, they enjoy it. If you need convincing, I’ve got some solid principles as to why this works. Here are five:
How Young is Too Young to Fly Cast?
Taking a kid fishing is a lot of fun. It also pays off dividends when you want to share more of those moments later in life. But before any of that can happen, there needs to be some level of instruction. When do you start? Young children, even as young as four years old, can fly cast. It isn’t easy. It takes work. Most of all, it takes patience – on your part.
Here are five ways to think about teaching the child in your life how to cast a fly rod:
Want some more practical steps to getting the kids in your life into fly fishing? Here are three more articles.