One of my favorite things about writing for Nature for Kids is being able to meet new families that get me jazzed about exploring the outdoors in exciting new ways. Introducing the Garcia family; I met this outdoor-enthusiastic family last weekend at the fourth annual Heber Valley Fly Fishing Festival put on by Four Season Fly Fishers and Utah Trout Unlimited. The festival was a huge hit for those in attendance and offered a variety of vender booths, musical guests, local artisans, classes, and one-on-one instruction from professional guides. They even had a fishing Derby for kids fifteen and under!
As much as I wanted my kids to be able to participate in the Derby, I realized how unrealistic that would be since they are only 3 and 1. I figured, however, that with 33 kids participating in the event I could find one to let me do a write-up on their experience. Cue 15 year olds A.J. and Jace (twins) and Cameron who is 9, of the Garcia family.
After a brief introduction, it didn’t take long for me to realize that I had stumbled upon fly fishing rock-stars. These kids are so good at their sport that they were featured guests on an Outdoor TV show called KSL Outdoors with Adam Eackle. Field and Stream even did a write up on them! How cool is that? But what is even more fabulous about them is the fact that they are passionate about inspiring other kids to get outside too. At this last Outdoor Retailer Show they were trading in video games and consoles for fishing equipment. (Pretty sweet deal if you ask me!) They also teach classes and sponsor clinics with hopes to build up the sport and get other kids hooked. If you would like to find out more about them, they have their own website Twin Territory and a FaceBook page .
Five minutes out on the river with the Garcia family, and you could see that they are passionate about the sport. It wasn’t long before A.J. had landed a 17 inch brown trout which afforded him the 1st place winnings for his age group. My favorite part of the experience, however, was watching Cameron taking pointers from his dad, Alex.
You could see how excited he was to be on the river with his big brothers, and he too enjoyed sharing with me what he knew. He even gave my 3 year old Goose some casting lessons.
So how do I go about getting my kids “hooked” on fly-fishing like the Garcia family? I asked around and got tips from many of the professionals at the show and these were their suggestions.
- Expose kids early! Most professionals that I spoke with agreed that the secret to getting kids interested in fly fishing is to get them out bait-fishing at a young age. “The younger the better” seemed to be the common consensus. Jim O’neal from -Four Seasons Fly Fishers said that he has taken both his kids and grandkids as young as two years old. “The trick is to start them off somewhere where there is a 99% chance of catching a fish. Fishing ponds that are stocked regularly with fish are perfect for a young beginner. You rig the pole, cast it for them, set the hook, and without telling them that there is a fish on the line, hand them the pole. It may take a couple minutes, but when they feel that fish on the line, then THEY are the ones that become hooked!”
- Choose the right age to introduce fly fishing based upon your child’s abilities. Fly-fishing takes hand-eye coordination and fine motor-skills which most kids develop between 10-12 years of age. However, most professionals agreed that if the child is interested enough in the sport, and fairly coordinated, you could introduce them to the sport as early as 6 or 7.
- Get the right gear. Just as you probably wouldn’t teach a youngster how to ride a bike using an adult-sized mountain bike, you shouldn’t start a child fly-fishing with equipment that is made for an adult. The length of the pole and weight of the line needs to match the ability of the user. Most retailers I spoke with suggested the Redington Minnow seen here for kiddos 6-12 years old and the Redington Crosswater seen here for pre-teens/teens. Jason Zicha of Fall River Flyrods recommended a graphite 7 foot pole with a 3/4lb line, rather than a 6 foot pole (which has become a trend as of late). That way, they have something to grow into, and you know how we all love saving money! You can also rent equipment from local fly-fishing shops. Four Seasons has kid’s packages for rent for $20-$30 bucks per day. That way you could try out the sport without being overly committed financially.
- Help your kids build muscle memory correctly the FIRST time – Mark Forslund, owner of Four Seasons, explained to me the importance of building correct muscle memory. It is like the saying “Practice does not make perfect, only perfect practice makes perfect”. Developing bad habits early in the learning process can cause major headaches later on. That is why you see beginners learning to cast out in an open field or park. They are teaching their muscles the correct form before taking their sport to the water.
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Some tips that he gave me was to use my eyes to watch the tip of the pole. Then, stop the pole at the top and pause, or reload the line, before bringing the pole forward. Lastly, he said to only do three good repetitions of the movement before taking a break. But, what if you don’t know the proper form but would like to get your kids into fly fishing? My suggestion: Take your kids to an event like this festival where they can try it out with guidance from professionals, and then if they really like it, you can look into actual lessons with a one-on-one instructor. - Lead by example! After following the Garcia boys, it occurred to me that none of their success would have happened had their Dad not fallen in love with the sport, himself. In fact, Alex (the Dad) got into fly fishing after his wife purchased him some equipment for an anniversary gift 20+ years earlier. I bet at that time he never imagined that he was laying the foundation that his sons would build their future on. So get outdoors, develop your own passion for the sport and then teach your kids!
I realize that is quite a long post, but before I close out, I must give a big shout out to Julie Zicha of Fall River Fly Rods for organizing such a spectacular event and for introducing me to so many wonderful people in the sport. My husband would also like to thank her, as I have now asked for my own gear as results of my experiences there.
Hope to see you on the water!
-Amanada
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