Youth and Angling!
The Youth and Angling!
So when I was growing up I loved angling! It was just something that I would literally think about night and day. Sometimes I wonder why and I suppose there is thousands of reasons why and maybe thats another days blog. One thing I do remember was the lack of knowledge available and the lack of mentors around to show a youngfella where to go and what to do. Now what happens a lot in angling is you hear stories, through the grapevine and you then re trace that story, to try and maybe go to the exact spot that maybe you heard a ten pound bass was caught. Thats fishing, everything hush hush and everything in the dark and its the one thing that has always annoyed me. The reality is our rivers and sea have been here far longer then any one of us and will be here long after we are gone. Spread the word and tell the truth is my motto and if we want angling to stay alive then its on us to try and do something about it. As I see it, the reality is very bleak and I can see a time when angling like hunting will be a thing of the past. So let me tell you a story!
Above is a good friend of mine, and angler all his life but had never caught a Salmon. So in 2016 we made a pact that he would catch a Salmon that year if it was the last thing he did. By the end of the year he ended up with a half dozen Salmon and it was simply by me passing on information that had been passed on to me through other anglers, that caught him them Salmon. So over a cup of coffee we discussed angling and how the reality looks so bleak and Des works with the KDYS. The idea of an angling led youth club came up and that set the ball rolling. So at the moment we are in the process of setting up this club and we wanted to make the club different to say the fantastic Tralee Bay Sea Angling Club. First of all we talked about fishing gear and anybody that does fish knows that gear isn't cheap so we applied for grants with the local NEKD centre and the IFI. We got some money in and now we in the process of getting gear not just for freshwater fishing but saltwater fishing also.
With this club we want to cover all aspects of angling, we want to show youngsters how to fish rivers and lochs but also how to catch bass or flounders. We want to bring them gathering bait but also how to cook what they catch. There will be no competitive nature but we will also teach them that there is a huge competition circuit in Ireland where thousands of people fish every weekend to try and fish for the national team. So at the moment we have bought an amount of gear but not every thing yet and we are so happy to have great sponsors on hand. Without the sponsors this wouldn't be possible and we have a five year plan in place and have some very interesting ideas of how to bring the youths of tralee out fishing. To be honest I am just a volunteer on this and its the trojan work of the KDYS and especially Des Baily, who because he caught them few Salmon last year is now on a mission to make this youth club a thriving success.