Teaching someone to fish.

[BigBassin144]

Ok, since I'm getting tired of fishing by myself in the summer when my dad's at work or busy doing something else, I have decided I need to find me a fishing buddy. So for christmas I gave my little cousin an older Zebco rod/reel for christmas along with a small plano box filled with an assortment of lures, including crankbaits, lipless crankbaits, buzzbaits, spinnerbaits, in-line spinners and some hooks and weights for other-than-bass-fishing.

Now, I am not an expert in any of these lures/techniques. Since my cousing (who's 9 or 10 years old (I can't remember, that's sad)) has only fished onc ein his life before, I decided I should start with the basics of...... you guessed it.... casting! Since it's a spining outfit it should be too hard to teach him. I've got a practice plug to teach him with too.

What I was wondering was what do you guys think I should teach fisrt (after casting of course)? I was thinking either the buzzbaits or cranks since they are basically a chuck 'n reel kind of thing. or do you think I should start with live bait and teech him how to properly reel in a fish and so forth before we move to artificials.

I'm very confused as to where to start since I've never taught anyone how to fish before. (except my friend and we were using 16' cane poles so it doesn't count) My cousin is very inthused [sp?] about learning to fish and can't wait till spring so we can start.

I'd very much appreciate some good advice!

Thanks,
BB

[lunker-lander]

Well, I took a seven-year-old fishing this Summer, and he picked up the casting very quick! We gave him an older Shakespear Magic Glass with a Daiwa Silvercast Spincast Reel to use, and he was flingin' your basic Worm/Bobber Rig about 30 YDS. by the end of the night.

It was bass fishing of course, but he was going for whatever would bite; he even got some good 16"+ LM by the 8:00PM Drive-In! We even taught him basic boat controls with a tiller-outboard.

I would just go with the basic bobber, hook, and sinker rig to start out. Get him to cast the practice plug(make sure it's at least 1/4 Ounce)in the yard first; this will teach him when to release the cast, so you're not having to deal with messy hooks and line.

After he can cast a good 10 YDS. with no problems, take him to the water and teach him the basic rig. First tie on the hook(You may need to do this; he may not know any of the basic knots). Second, put on your sinker about 8" above the bobber. Let him do this to get the feel for handling the line carefully. Finally, put on your bobber(Go with a spring type; the circular ones have more resistance, and they are hard to do, evn with smaller hands).

After he sets up his rig, put the first worm on the hook for him, let him do the remaining ones; supervise.

After he masters all this, let him go and keep watch!

Hope it helps,

-Lunk-

[WallStreetAmigo]

I would think that starting with something more stationary might be better, just for the fact that worrying about cranking it in and setting the hook at the same time might be a bit much at first. He is a little older than my kids, but that is what I did with them. They started with casting practice, then a worm and bobber for sunfish (easy to catch, pretty scrappy fighters on light tackle for their size too...). Now my four year old daughter can work a popper like nobody's business and my 8 year old is awesome with a sinnerbait....no kidding. Once they caught a bunch of fish, I noticed that the excitement and enthusiasm kept incresing. Now they will make their own decisions about what to try.

Just my life savings.....oops I mean 2 cents....lol

[WallStreetAmigo]

Man you're quick LL.....

[brushhog]

I fish with my 9 year old boy and bass fishin' wise he can do anything. He started fishing when he was eight so he has 2 full season under his belt...

There is probably a lot of ways to go about teaching him, Lunker and Amigo gave great advice... I would add this, simply make sure he is catching something! even now if the bite is slow my son enjoys throwin' a worm and chasing sunfish!
This is a great thing you are doing, teaching someone else our great sport, be patient and make sure your first couple of trips are simply about him learning and CATCHING... When you first take a kid fishing you will spend a lot of time just assisting him, it will be worth it.

[WallStreetAmigo]

amen brushhog. The first few times with my kids would have driven me insane if I didn't love the little buggers so much! lol. BB, taking it slow and making a huge deal out of any fish they caught kept the interest going long enough for them to start learning....in the end what you are doing is something to be proud of! Good foe you.

[WallStreetAmigo]

Man my spelling sucks today........

[BigBassin144]

Thanks for the advice guys. Most likely i will start him out fishing in our pond, of course, since it close to the house and those little bluegill are always biting, ALWAYS! The only concern I have about starting with the basic worm and bobber is that the bluegill aren't the only ones who'll willing take the worms. It's the lig 24"+ catfish I am worried about for him. They sur edo put upa heck of a fight. (especially through the ice )

Anyways, thanks again guys. Once I get my driver's liscence we can go to other places around here. I am hoping to get it this spring. That would be good so we can go other places.

So besides the basic worm and bobber, of bass tackle, what do you tihnk would be the easiest for him to learn (and for me to teach)?

Thanks everybody,
BB

[MississippiBoy]

BB, if you're gonna be there with him while he's fishing, I don't know if there'd be a problem with introducing him to a big kitty. I don't know how big you are, but I imagine you could hold your own against a 24" catfish .

I don't know of a better way to get a kid to fall completely and utterly in love with fishing than to let him latch onto something big like that. Yeah, he'll have really light tackle, so it might just break off. But if he ever lands a big one, you'll have to pull him away from the water with a winch.

I dunno...just my $.02

[lunker-lander]

Originally Posted by BigBassin144

Anyways, thanks again guys. Once I get my driver's liscence we can go to other places around here. I am hoping to get it this spring. That would be good so we can go other places.

Thanks everybody,
BB

I can't wait to get my license next February. You'll see me all over towin' my rig with the 'ole Ford Ranger(1992 2WD)! Especially when we hook up the new TM, depthfinder, livewell, and bilge pump!

-Lunk-

[carolina-rig-01]

like they said, i too would start simple. either nightcrawlers, or maybe minnows or whatever. but remember to keep it fun, and don't get dissapointed if he gets burnt out and ready to leave before you do. it's part of being young, and if you make him stay longer than he wants the it's not gonna be fun and he won't be as likley to wanna go back. it's a great thing to teach someone to fish. i took my wife for her first time when we were dating. it started like you would expect, a lot of getting hung up and things like that. now she will keep up with any guy i know with a baitcaster all day long. it's really fun when they start learning what baits should produce when and in what colors, finding patterns and stuff like that. i think all anglers owe you a thank you. it's us getting people into fishing that will guarentee our sport will be around for a long time.

[bassinbob]

I would say the same as the other posts. The first lure I learnrd how to use was the in line spinner. Dad taught me how to fish but just with live bait. In lines are simple to use and catch fish. Everything else will follow. The second I used was a floating Rapala. Then I moved on to trolling for walleyes with diving plugs. Now it's all bass. Last year I took my 8 year old neice out and casted horny toads and let her wind them in. The cost nothing but happiness in seeing another young one with eyes beaming wide and a bass flopping at the boat.

[islandbass]

Patience, and don't get upset. You might also be spending more time untagling knots than fishing, so expect that it could happen. To a certain extent, let them experiment. My 3 year old since his first cast, gets upset when I try to "help" or "teach" him the "right" way.

Have fun. I also agree going the simple route lure wise. Even inline spinners and spoons can be fun for them. It doesn't get any easier than cast and retrieve. Worms would also be my first choice, live or otherwise.

[Rebbasser]

Great advice! Start him perch jerking, and when he wants to try lures-and he will-move on from there.

[BigBassin144]

Thanks for all the help everybody. I have got a pretty good idea of how I am going to go about this.

1. Casting.
2. Live bait under float
3. in-line spinners
4. crankbaits
5. Then I'll let him tell me what he want to learn how to use next. (although buzzbaits I think would be easy too and fun )

Thanks again,
BB

[lunker-lander]

Good outline, BB144. But remember, he is still a kid. Don't make this like school; if he wants to stop after you teach him to cast, do it. Don't force it upon him; he'll let you know if he really likes it and wants to give it another try. That's how I was taught, and if it seemed like work to me, I wouldn't be here today...

-Lunk-

[BigBassin144]

LL, that's true. I know to not force it on him. He has fished once before with us. We cast it for him and let him reel it in. then we got pictures. he was really excited and I think He'll really want to learn this spring.

MississippiBoy, that is a good point. that would really get him fired up. Since our catfish are so easy to catch I think that might be a good thing for him to get. (Our catfish have been caught on worms, baby bluegill, minnows, floating flies, rapalas (original floating), and the most recent: through the ice)

So it shouldn't be too hard to get him one,

BB

[lunker-lander]

Originally Posted by BigBassin144

LL, that's true. I know to not force it on him. He has fished once before with us. We cast it for him and let him reel it in. then we got pictures. he was really excited and I think He'll really want to learn this spring.

MississippiBoy, that is a good point. that would really get him fired up. Since our catfish are so easy to catch I think that might be a good thing for him to get. (Our catfish have been caught on worms, baby bluegill, minnows, floating flies, rapalas (original floating), and the most recent: through the ice)

So it shouldn't be too hard to get him one,

BB

Nothing like a big, 'ole bulky catfish to fire 'im up!

This last year, I caught one catfish on a #3 White Mepps Spinner, so my buddy ran to get a bucket, since he was just starting his pond stocking. Being the studly man I am, I was too afraid to take it off, so he manned up and did it(--). After a few choice words from him about getting slimy, I hook into another on the Mepps on the next cast! What are the chances of this, a catfish on a Mepps? Well, it can't be as bad as Wargoth's(I believe)catfish on a buzzbait!

-Lunk-

[BigBassin144]

Good story. I used to be afraid of the catfish. they do hurt like crap though when you get strung. If you know how to hold them, you'll be fine.

BB

[WallStreetAmigo]

Hey BB, if the kid is half as excited about it as you are, you will have no problem at all!

[BigBassin144]

He seemed to be really excite about, as am I. Although I realized I was not correct on him being 9 or 10. He is actually 8. I'm sure that won't make too much of a difference.

I just want to thank everyone again for all the advice, it's helped a lot.

BB

[WallStreetAmigo]

lol.....at least he's not your kid. I forget how old my kids are all the time.......but when you have as many as we do, an estimate is good enough.....

I prefer to calculate their age as how many years until they go to college...lol

[BigBassin144]

As long as it works!

BB