Fishing with Children

[Fly Rod Rob]

I need some advice.

My nephew has stated that he wants to go on a fishing trip with Uncle Rob. My sister called me and asked if I would take him on his first fishing trip. My nephew is 3 1/2 years old. I don't have children, so I am kind of at a loss here when it comes to information.

What I have planned is to take him over to my wife's uncle's house. He has a house on the Stones River in M'boro where there is a wide section of the river. We will have access to the house (ie restroom, drinks, etc.) and we will only be a few miles from my sister's house.

I am guessing that a 3 1/2 year old doesn't have the motor skills yet to cast a fly rod, so I called a friend of mine and have arranged to get a push button Zebco rod and reel for him to use. I am guessing also that I will need to get some bobbers for him too.

I am guessing that if the fishing is slow, we can wade around and look for crawdads, flip over rocks and look for bugs, learn to skip stones, but other than that, I don't know what other diversions we would have.

I guess what I am needing advice upon is "how long is too long" for a 3 1/2 year old fishing trip? When do you call it a day? What else should I plan for? Should I even bring a rod to fish or just let him fish? I just want to make sure I have all the bases covered and that he has fun.

Any other helpful hints or tips on fishing with children would be very much appreciated.

Thanks,

-Rob

 

[Shankopotamus]

Sounds like you have most of it figured out already. The little feller will let you know when he's done- not necessarily by telling you! LOL The Zebco is your best bet. Just be there with him and help him cast it and fish with it. You'll probably have to set the hook, but let him reel it in if he can.
Put a life jacket on him too. If you don't have one, get one. An ounce of prevention...
You are liable to enjoy the trip more than he does!

 

[puddle jumper]

Three things come to mind,,,
Bring food and drinks,,,
Have plenty of paitents,,
And the big one for me to figure out was dont try to fish yourself,,, you will spend most of the time helping him.. try to take him where he can catch a bunch of fish,, he wont care how big they are just that he caught some...
Puddle

 

[polo-dog]

The Zebco idea is fine but to tell you the truth, I start almost everyone out with spinning tackle. I teach them to pitch the bait and/or bobber out rather than overhand cast. At 3 years old I probably wouldn't have him cast at all or even get the idea that he should try. That's how the rod will find it's way into the water. I usually fish right along side a newby and with him being that young you could probably get a fish on your line, tell him to switch rods with you and then tell him that you think he might have a bite and to reel in. If you do it right they never catch on that you are getting the fish hooked for them at all. When they are a bit older it's tougher to fool them but at the end of the day they tell everyone that they caught all of the fish and you didn't even catch one they really like that. Fishing for bluegills or crappie with bobbers would be a way that they could see the bite but this time of the year it's easier to just use panfish assassins or worms on the bottom. Up here the bluegills are not on the beds yet but in a month they will be. If you start them out with a spinning rod and reel then I think that they are happier because they are using what the "big people" are using. That way you don't have to go and buy a new rig just for them and have it sit and be useless when they aren't fishing too. Most little kids can be taught to cast a spinning rod just as easily as a Zebco too and with a spinning outfit they can have two hands on the rod and reel while often a Zebco set up has a pistol grip on it and that means casting one handed, one less hand to hold onto the rod with. I always have a great time taking little kids and newbys out fishing and I would expect that you will too. Just don't expect too much and quit before things get out of hand. Often if you take minnows or crickets you find out that the little one has a lot of fun playing with the bait while you fish. Just let them pull in what you hook and they will be happy.

 

[bbdown]

I've got three kids the two youngest are girls 4 and 3 years old. They love their spongebob and taz push button zebcos. I fish with them using bobbers with worms or crickits and they love it. I don't even set the hook for them. I have found with live bait and sharp hooks we catch enough maybe not every bite but they enjoy doing it "all by myself". Both are different, the older catches one and she's done. But my baby she won't stop until we fire up the motor. The one thing I would mention that nobody else has so far is make sure you bring SUNBLOCK!!!. Oh, and one more thing........BRING SUNBLOCK!!!

 

[Hank's Dad]

My boy caught his first fish with no help at 2 1/2. It was a bluegill on a short Zebco rod and reel. Float, split shot and a hook with a worm in a farm pond. I would not go to the river. I'd go to some pond you know has a lot of bream/bluegill and let them catch one after another. That's what I did with Hank. Grandma's pond has actually too many sunfish so it was easy to get him right in them and let him catch a lot.

Another thing I did was keep a few even though they were only about as big as my hand and I took them home, filleted them and fried up the paper thin fillets. He gobbled them right up and he was hooked.

All the other things like food, drinks and sunblock are important as well as not making them stay longer than they want to. But the real key is they have to CATCH fish. Find somewhere you know they're going to have success and you'll create a fisherman for life.

David.

 

[fisherpal2k]

<font size="3"> You have got some great advice on this and just want to add a little. </font></p>

<font size="3">Take time to go to a small pond or somewhere there is lots of bream or something to keep them busy. At 3 1/2 yr old the attention span will run out in about an hour.</font></p>

<font size="3">When I took my daughter fishing, she would fish for awhile and then wanted to start "exploring" the banks. At first I tried to keep her fishing, but later found out that if they can just have fun at whatever they are doing it will be a great Day!</font></p>

<font size="3" /></p>

<font size="3">Have patience and take the time to spend with him. Like was said before, if you fish keep your attention on the little one. There will be a ton of questions and then he will want to walk around or throw rocks or whatever. The best rule of thumb is to JUST HAVE FUN!!!!</font></p>

 

[Shark]

The little guy is only 3 yrs old - Leave your rod and reel in the vehicle. This will be about all about you both having fun and getting him interested in fishing. He can learn to fish as he gets older.

Go to a farm pond.... It's much safer and easier to catch sunfish and maybe catfish. Equipment needed - Zebco rod & reel (smaller is better), small 1 in or 1 1/2 in bobbers, small hooks, a couple split shot and nightcrawlers is all. Drinks, snacks, sunblock and even like it was mentioned, a life vest.

One last note... his attention span may not be long. It could easily turn out to be a short fishing trip with much more play time. lol

 

[Guest]

Good suggestions so far.

Go with a small spinning or underspin if possible. Push button is way to big for a 3.5 yr old. Think of it more as a play activity rather than fishing. Let the kid dictate how much time is spent looking for bugs or wading in the mud. The kid will let you know when they are ready to go home.

 

[Hank's Dad]

Forgot one very important thing......TAKE A CAMERA!! There's nothing like having a picture on the wall of the first fish you ever caught in your life. Got that for my boy and turned it into a plaque. Got my nephew and brother with the little one's first fish too. TAKE A CAMERA!!!

 

[Fly Rod Rob]

Thanks everyone for the very helpful suggestions. I never even thought about a PFD for him. Great idea! I will not forget the sunscreen either. Thank you all for the suggestions and I think a pond would be better suited for a trip.

I am still in the planning stage of this, so I have a little time to gather equipment (terminal tackle) for the trip and hunt down a small pond in the area.

He originally told my sister that he wanted to go fishing with me and catch a shark. Since no species of shark is indigenous to TN, she convinced him that we would need to fish for something else. He was fine with that...emoLaugh

Thanks again for all the great tips and advice. It is sincerely appreciated.

-Rob

 

[sprestwood]

It seems like all kids have some interest in fishing, nut they all bring their own level of patients and level of interest. Some times it is just as exciting for them to watch you reel in a fish, even a small bream. My youngest nephew had some beginers luck casting a zebco and then it required alot of instruction and practice. He was 3 when the practice casting started we went fishing a year later and consequently caught his first fish then. It will be recomended you do most of the casting even if you spend some time teaching, just tell the child you can get it out further to where the fish are.

 

[Shark]

HEY NOW......... NO ONE........... AND I MEAN - NO ONE............. IS putting a hook into me!!!!!!!!!!! Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

Sorry, I just couldn't resist saying that. By the way, this Shark has already been caught and netted by a cute little Tenn lady. And she refuses to toss me back. lol