Neil Maidment
Moderator
Thanks for some more entertaining words Kevin.
Back in the 60's and 70's, between the ages of around 7 to 15 my fishing was only restricted by how far my legs could take me, either on foot, by bike or bus. Quite a group of us would regularly meet up after much planning and even had a few all nighters. Innocence or ignorance? But no major mishaps (some minor!) but we all made it into adulthood reasonably OK.
Times change. I had a load of spare time a few years ago and got involved with the Scout Movement. Camping was fine but when I suggested a site near a river, because we had a few cubs & scouts showing interest in fishing, it was instantly rejected as far too risky and would require an inordinate number of adult supervisors. (We did go canoeing once... in the local swimming pool!). That cub/scout group is no longer in existence (lack of new members).
Having said that, I'm pleased to see a lot of young anglers at my local commercial fishery (see comments on Mark W's articles). The challenge could be to get them to experience something other than sitting behind matching rods and buzzers.
Keep up the good writing.
Back in the 60's and 70's, between the ages of around 7 to 15 my fishing was only restricted by how far my legs could take me, either on foot, by bike or bus. Quite a group of us would regularly meet up after much planning and even had a few all nighters. Innocence or ignorance? But no major mishaps (some minor!) but we all made it into adulthood reasonably OK.
Times change. I had a load of spare time a few years ago and got involved with the Scout Movement. Camping was fine but when I suggested a site near a river, because we had a few cubs & scouts showing interest in fishing, it was instantly rejected as far too risky and would require an inordinate number of adult supervisors. (We did go canoeing once... in the local swimming pool!). That cub/scout group is no longer in existence (lack of new members).
Having said that, I'm pleased to see a lot of young anglers at my local commercial fishery (see comments on Mark W's articles). The challenge could be to get them to experience something other than sitting behind matching rods and buzzers.
Keep up the good writing.