Its summertime, as the school bell has rung for the final time. With the kiddies off, parents and perhaps grandparents are now charged with the tough task of providing wholesome, exciting activities throughout the upcoming months.

Here in Southwest Florida, the sport of fishing is an often-overlooked activity for area youth, as structured summer camps and organized sport leagues abound. While the aforementioned do provide positive structure and shaping, let’s not forget to share with our youth an on the water angling excursion where they will experience fun, family, sportsmanship and conservation.

Taking youth anglers on an excursion will however, be filled with hard work and unique challenges. Remember, the overall experience should be more than just focusing upon the fundamentals of casting, hook sets and rigging, but forging a life shaping experience.

Step one to ensuring a positive youth fishing experience needs to be completed well prior to departure. Understanding the aptitude of your anglers will be vital, as youngsters of all ages have significantly varying attention spans and skills.

What youth anglers want most through out the duration of a fishing trip are heaps of “action” and “catching opportunities”! With that important aspect in mind, Southwest Florida has many piscatorial species that lend themselves to catching more than others.

Available in both shallow and deep, many ideal targets for youth anglers possess bright tropical colors and patterns complete with unique biological stories of survival and adaptation.

In the shallow inshore waters, species such as redfish, ladyfish, snapper and speckled trout are available seasonally and can be effectively caught employing “youth friendly” methods such as a live shrimp deployed under a bobber/popping cork. As your youth angler’s skills develop, more intricate techniques such as casting jigs and artificial lures can be implemented.

An added bonus while fishing the inshore waters will be the abundance of wildlife observed. Herds of manatees can be found grazing over the grass flats, bottlenose dolphins rolling in the deeper channels and wading birds working the shorelines will more than complete a day on the water!

Out on the calm waters of the Gulf, dozens of artificial/natural reefs and “shipwrecks” line the coast. Here, swimming throughout each reef system, a plethora of fish can be found including vibrant varieties of snapper and grouper. Frequently bending the rod and pulling drag will surely be toothy mackerels, resident goliath grouper and coastal sharks.

Requiring little or no casting, beginner/youth friendly techniques can be applied with solid success while fishing the reefs. Baits, both live and dead, can simply be deployed to the bottom on a fish finder rig and reeled taught in order to acutely feel a bite.

Remember, when you are fishing with youth anglers, “Kids will be Kids”! Hooks will be flying around, lines will be tangling and perhaps a rod or two will be lost overboard. Relax and take a deep breath, these things are going to happen, it is expected!

There is no room on board for short tempers, only praise for a job well done. Showing exuberance when things go well will certainly add to a youths’ overall angling experience.

Spending time on the water with young anglers is also a great opportunity for us to promote sound environmental stewardship. Learning about Florida’s coastal ecosystem and understanding its fragility will help guide youth anglers in making concise choices throughout their lives and a better understanding of how their choices effect the environment.

Last of all, as fish are rapidly coming over the rail we must also take the time to teach responsible angling practices. Interesting and fun to learn, proper fish handling, size/bag limits, venting and release techniques will surely benefit the future health of our fishery.

Venturing into the summer season exceptional fishing opportunities will abound. Now is the time to afford that ultimate outdoor experience for the future of our great sport. Take a youth angler fishing!

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