Take a Kid Fishing!
Not too long ago, I wrote a post about taking my kids fishing. I told you that I was going to take Jacob to get an Ugly Stik Ultralight rod and reel. Well, we were able to get out to the local Wal-Mart and find the combo last week. We ended up with the 4’6″ one piece rod, with a matching Shakespeare reel.
Last Monday we finally got out to a local lake to fish for some bluegill and bass. We bought a bunch of night crawlers and some octopus hooks, along with some bobbers and headed out to the lake. It didn’t take us long to start catching some fish. In fact, I got my daughter, Skylar, set up with her little Tigger fishing pole, and turned around to get Jacob baited up, only to see Skylar’s bobber start diving under the water. Sure enough, with a little help, she was able to pull in a little bluegill. So, we got that fish off, and got her line cast back out into the lake so that I could help Jacob get his pole ready. Sure enough, another bluegill bit Skylar’s night crawler and headed for the bottom of the lake. I had to help her get the second fish reeled in, and Jacob didn’t even have his line in the water yet! He was getting pretty aggravated, as he wanted to get to fishing too. I finally was able to help him get everything ready, and get his line out in the water. It didn’t take long until he was able to start reeling in little bluegill as well.
We had quite a day, and caught a lot of little bluegills. Jacob also was able to catch one little bass. He was thrilled to death about it! Of course Jacob and Skylar were “competing” to see which of them were the best fisherman. I think they decided that Skylar caught the most, but Jacob caught the biggest one. That bass put him over the top. He even caught that one all by himself, without any help from me (except I cast the line out for him).
One thing I learned on this trip was that it can be tiring to try and cast for two kids! They were wearing me out, as I would cast out for one, and then help the other to reel in a fish, only to do it all over again. Jacob thought it was hilarious that it was their first time and they were able to catch more fish than dear old dad. I didn’t catch hardly any fish…every time I had one on the hook, I’d let Skylar come over and reel it in. I wouldn’t have had it any other way!
After a while, the kids started getting bored with the fishing. The fish weren’t biting as well as when we first got there, so they started getting a bit antsy. They began running around and playing, which was fine, since we went to a place that had a good play area as well. They were able to play a while, and then come back and fish a little bit. It worked out very nice, and they had a blast.
Skylar found herself some ducks to follow around. She would try to sneak up on them if they were on the bank, then she would just walk along the bank while they were swimming in the lake. She has a much different personality to my son. She will play by herself, and was just as happy as could be to be by herself with the ducks!
We took several pictures throughout the day, as you can see from what I have posted on here tonight. I can’t believe it took me a week and a half to get this all posted. It was a great day, and I know we will be doing it more this summer!
Here are a few more pictures:
May 15th, 2008 at 1:15 am
Priceless memories there!! Thanks for the motivation to get my grandkids out to the pond.
May 15th, 2008 at 6:37 am
Those are the cutest pictures. Congrats on all the fish they caught. They both look like they had a great time and that is what is most important.
May 15th, 2008 at 8:06 am
Looks like an awesome day for the kids. Those are the ones they will remember for years to come. Great stuff Kris. I can’t wait for our kid to finally arrive, and then to be old enough to do those things. I’m not gonna rush it though!
May 15th, 2008 at 8:09 am
That sounds like an awesome trip! We are looking forward to having several of those trips with Lil Sugar. I might have to learn how to take a fish off a hook though…
May 15th, 2008 at 9:30 am
Sounds like a great day for all concerned. The pictures are great! So cute.
May 15th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
You must have been one happy Pappa! Look at the smiles on their faces – awesome!
May 15th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
[…] was cruising the blogs I read every day, and this article on Jake’s outdoors caught my eye. The pictures alone are enough to make the toughest of the […]
May 15th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Sounds and looks like fun. Taking two kids fishing at the same time can be quite a challenge!
May 16th, 2008 at 10:06 am
So, has Jacob started his “fishing stories” yet. If you had not taken a picture, he could have told us about the BIG one! :p You and Cynthia have adorable children!
May 19th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
It’s great to take kids fishing at an early age. It can be challenging but is great to get them in the great outdoors and teach them how to fish. I have a two and a half year old and a nine month old I can’t wait to take fishing. My oldest and I are going soon.
May 23rd, 2008 at 6:41 am
[…] love this post at Jakes Outdoors about taking his kids […]
May 23rd, 2008 at 10:52 am
Looks and sounds like a great day of fishing. And after hearing about your experience, I will have to start practicing casting for two!
I took our older son fishing for the first time a few weeks ago, and he caught his first fish – a big crappie. Boy was he excited about it. Your story reminds me to plan another day at the pond very soon.
May 28th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Just love these take your kids fishing articles! I made a post on this very thing also. A very good idea, to teach the next generation about the “Outdoors,” so that this wonderful way of life can be passed on and on.Good article and photos, looks like the kids had fun. Also would like to link our blogs together if you would like I am posting your link in my blogroll. Great Blog!
March 9th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
Nice story and great pictures. It’s nice to see everyone enjoy fishing so much. My daughter is 14 months and I can’t wait to take her fishing for the first time. Thanks for sharing.
August 19th, 2009 at 2:24 pm
I love going fishing with my kids I also have a blog that is about taking your kids fishing. I love to see that there are more people out fishing with their kids, I have so many memories of fishing with my family and they are great!
January 8th, 2010 at 12:59 am
Great site I’m looking forward to reading more posts from you!
July 6th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Great Fun. One of my best memories is when Dad took me down to a little pond at the camp ground we were staying at and I caught my first Largemouth Bass (5lbs.). He let me land and release the fish even though he helped a little. That one day kept me fishing. I love the sport and go as often as I can. I also enjoyed taking my girls when they were younger.
I sure miss Dad and now the girls are grown I miss them too.
Keep it up.
Mike