Thank you for the feedback.  Following the report yesterday (Wednesday 21st March) concerning kids fishing we received this letter suggesting a sensible solution to encourage kids into fishing :

Hi Ross.

Just a thought that I am interested in hearing your perspective on in regards to getting kids into fishing-please don’t post under my name as sure this will be seen as sinful thinking by a few!!!

I am a passionate fisherman bought up on the simple form of spin/bait fishing in Southland where I had regular success catching some nice trout.

I am now am addicted to the art of fly-fishing and wouldn’t dream of using a threadline.

In the limited time I have to go fishing I always target the Central Plateau and much prefer river fishing.

I have four kids and have unsuccessfully tried to get them hooked on fishing.

This has been spin fishing on annual trips to the South Island as well as trying to get them fly fishing on the Tongariro/Taupo region.

Down south I struggled to get them onto fish as the trout seemed so well educated as there is now a lot of overseas angling pressure.

I managed to get a few myself nymphing or dry fly but a little tricky for the kids to master as learners on the finicky Southland trout.

On the Tongariro I also had limited success keeping them interested as at 8-12 years old they struggled casting a fly consistently into the correct spots-meaning they really never managed to regularly hook up. This also caused them great frustration with the inevitable numerous tangles.

One thing that I am sure would get them hooked into the great sport would be if they could (I can hear gasps of disbelief and anger already) use a spinning rod up to say the age of twelve on some of the great rivers in the Central Plateau like the Tongariro/Tauranga Taupo.

I’m sure if they had the excitement of hooking up a few fresh run feisty Tongariro rainbows this would give them the bug and the patience to learn the art of flycasting and give them a passion for crystal clear rivers.

I know this is a bit left field and there are a lot of good spinning rivers available in other regions, but as I predominately fish the Taupo rivers with the limited fishing time I get, this is a bit of a barrier to bringing my kids along with me.

If they could tag along with a spinning rod up until they were realistically old enough to have the patience to learn to fly fish and enjoy this simple uncomplicated form of fishing our beautiful rivers- and catch some fish I am sure they would be keen to join me on my regular Turangi fishing trips.

Maybe just a few weekends a winter where this was allowed would be sufficient to set the bug!!

What are your thoughts???

 

And another response:

 

Gidday mate,

Best way to encourage kids to take up fishing?

Simple!

Take them a few times, honestly, that’s all it takes.

 

Then we read some hope for the future – from Taupo Fishing Club’s fb:

Thanks McHale Hire for sponsoring Spot Prizes for our Junior Anglers…they are going to be safe out on the water with these Bodyboards and Fins!