Taking a kid fishing can be an awesome experience for everyone involved! However, it can also be a frustrating and negative experience for everyone involved. Ha! Having been a full-time fishing guide for several years and as a father of young children myself, I have learned a lot about how to have the best possible experience if you are considering a guided trip with kids. Here are several things to take into consideration that should certainly help everyone to have a great time.
- These tips are primarily intended for young children between the ages of 5 and 12. In my experience, I do not recommend taking children under the age of 5 on a guided fishing trip. Exceptionally few children under the age of 5 do well on a guided fishing trip. Under the age of 5, my recommendation is to simply watch my YouTube video about taking kids fishing, find a local pond, and give it your best shot. This doesn’t mean I am not willing to take a child under the age of 5, but rather that I just generally recommend waiting until they are at least 5 years old for a guided trip. I target black bass species with artificial lures only on my guided trips, and most of the time with kids under 5, this just doesn’t work very well.
- The biggest thing to keep in mind when bringing a young child along for a guided fishing trip is that in so doing, this fishing trip is not your fishing trip anymore! This trip is all about that kid and helping to ensure that he has a good time. That kid and helping him to have a good time becomes my #1 goal and it should be yours as well. I have had a lot of trips over the years where it is very clear that dad is bringing the kid along because he knew the only way Mama was going to let him go on a fishing trip is if he brought a kid along with him. These trips rarely go well mostly because dad is frustrated because he wants to fish and gets impatient and short tempered with the kid complaining about it being hot, being bored, being tired, etc. If you want to book a fishing trip for you then you need to book a fishing trip for you.
- Having said that, that absolutely does not mean that you won’t get to fish. You will get to fish plenty and will also have opportunities to catch fish. All this means, is that when you bring a kid along, you are an afterthought for me. Helping the kid to catch bass and have a good time is my #1. Sometimes this means that we don’t get to fish perhaps what would be the absolute best areas or use the absolute best techniques because it may be beyond the kid’s skill level or patience level or whatever. I have to figure out what the best way for the kid to catch bass is, not necessarily what the best way is for an adult (yourself) to catch bass is. Sometimes they are the same and sometimes they are not.
- Bring additional activities. Generally I suggest leaving the electronic devices at home, but I am not completely opposed to them. Bring a book to read, music to listen to, an activity book, whatever. Don’t expect your kid to fish the whole time. Generally when you are trying to force them to keep a fishing rod in their hands the whole time, that doesn’t go well. Usually what happens is they will make a handful of casts then want to do something else. Whether it’s just sit down or eat a snack or do one of their other activities. They will pick up their rod again and start fishing when they want to (usually when someone else has caught a fish…ha!). Just let them do things at their pace. As long as they aren’t causing damage to anything in the boat or putting themselves or anyone else in danger, I am not opposed to them doing whatever they want to do on the boat. Just let them do their thing! I have a few tricks up my sleeve for keeping kids entertained on the boat when they don’t want to fish as well, but don’t just count on my activities to keep them busy. Ha!
- Be ready to call the trip done early. Don’t expect to get a full 5-8 hours out of the kid. They usually want to tap out at around 1.5-3 hours. When a kid is ready to go home after an hour and a half and you hold them hostage and keep them out there for the full 5 hours, that never goes well. Ideally once the kid says they are ready to go, it is probably time to go. I am ok with trying to encourage them to stay out for another hour or so after they’ve indicated they want to go, but much more than that you are asking for trouble and they will generally have a negative experience. Nonetheless, having said that, you are the one that makes the decision on when to go in if we go in early. I will take us back to the dock whenever you tell me to. Just keep in mind, if we do head in early, I do not offer a discounted rate on our trip at all (unless it is due to unsafe weather conditions).
- RELAX AND ENJOY THE TIME ON THE WATER WITH YOUR KID! Remember that this trip probably isn’t really about catching fish. Remember what the real reason for the trip is.
Keep these things in mind, let me know if you have any questions or concerns, and we will all be set up to have a great time!