Met A Fishing Parter For The Night Yesterday

[ipeeinmywetsuit]

So I was walking a pond I fish pretty regularly the other night and I showed up before the sunset as the fishing has been better a little before the sunset now rather than at night. Caught a few small ones on the top water but it slowed down so I decided to explore the creeks and other small ponds. I found this stream that was crystal clear and chalked with bass and big catfish. It was beautiful and tranquil. I decide to just fly line a green senko because thats always a winner at these waters. So this small kid walks up to me and it turns out he's ten years old and just starts talking with me about fishing. He says he walks out here at night because theres nothing to do in his apartments; he can't skate or make a lot of noise. I cast under the bridge over the small stream and pull out this beautiful little 2lb black bass. It had a jet black on top and emerald green on the sides; just one of those pretty and healthy fish you love to spend a little extra time looking at. We're both stoked on this fish and he's telling me that they look scary especially because it was thrashing hard as I just yanked it out of the shallow stuff. Anyways this ten year old was super respectful and considerate. He wasn't stumbling over my gear and he knew to get back when I felt a bite and was about to set the hook. Not to mention he was sharp for his age.. and patient. He started to sort of guide me around to different ponds where he see's big fish from time to time. He was sooo amped on the fish I was catching he started saying he needs to get some gear to fish with and he'll ask his dad. I tell him a little about what he should look for and maybe get at Walmart or something. It's about 7:00 at night by now and I ask if he has a curfew and say I walk over by the stream near his apartments. I'm doing this because a 10 year old should not be alone at all in my opinion plus I get to explore a new creek and make sure he gets home. He tells me he doesn't have a curfew because his dad doesn't mind as long as he stays out by these ponds, but he'll check in with his dad and come back. I felt sort of bad/worried for him as it seemed like he didn't have a lot of supervision. Still he's a smart kid none the less; maybe not smart to just come up and start talking to me alone but whatever. Anyways, he came back and hung out with me until a little after sunset and I said I'm going to go back to my original pond maybe I'll see him around again and he should get home for the night. I don't have any siblings but I was kind of impressed that a ten year old was able to just hang out and not even fish but just watch and talk for two hours. It's hard for me to get friends my age to do that and I am 23. Anyways, it was a fun night and even though the 2lb fish was the only decent sized catch of the night my new fishing partner for the night made it interesting.

So that's my fishing report for yesterday, not in the usual tradition. However, seeing that kid so stoked on fishing, hearing that he's bored out there, and seeing him without supervision got me thinking. I have old spinning rods that I was either going to throw away or sell on craigslist for like 10-15 bucks. They are old poles from my youth.. the shakespeare type that are cheap but work. I was thinking if I see him out there again a few more times maybe I'll give him one of these rods to occupy his time and teach him how to wacky rig a senko or something because thats all he really needs out there. I imagine I should introduce myself to his dad first before giving him stuff but I'm worried his dad will either think I am crazy or be crazy himself. I feel like I should do a good thing here but I want to protect myself. I was super cautious and formal around this kid because it was just plain odd for him to be out there alone. Maybe you guys have some thoughts on this? Maybe I should just stay away all together? Its just always awesome to see someone who reminds you of yourself at that age stoked on fishing.

[HookSetDon]

Youre not doing anything wrong, dont have him sit on your lap or anything well your showing him how to tie knots and youll be fine lol.

[ipeeinmywetsuit]

Youre not doing anything wrong, dont have him sit on your lap or anything well your showing him how to tie knots and youll be fine lol.

.... obviously haha.

[hooah212002]

If you see him again and it becomes a regular occurrence, INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO HIS PARENTS! I say this as a father myself and if my son came to me and said he was talking to some older guy, I'd probably flip and hunt him down, if not just to find out if he's a creep or not. But if you go talk to him first and he is ok with it, there shouldn't be any problem. I see nothing inherently wrong with what you are doing and wouldn't necessarily mind if my son was doing it, but you are going to be the first person they talk to if anything happens to this young man. At any rate, you are doing a good thing by introducing a young person to fishing.

[ipeeinmywetsuit]

If you see him again and it becomes a regular occurrence, INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO HIS PARENTS! I say this as a father myself and if my son came to me and said he was talking to some older guy, I'd probably flip and hunt him down, if not just to find out if he's a creep or not. But if you go talk to him first and he is ok with it, there shouldn't be any problem. I see nothing inherently wrong with what you are doing and wouldn't necessarily mind if my son was doing it, but you are going to be the first person they talk to if anything happens to this young man. At any rate, you are doing a good thing by introducing a young person to fishing.

My assumption exactly. I thought it was weird that he went to check in at home and most likely told his dad he was out there with me yet no one else came out with him. It's why I feel like he might not have a lot of supervision.. especially in my area where theres a lot of people. It's just not in his best interest to be alone out there.

[roadwarrior]

If you see him again and it becomes a regular occurrence, INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO HIS PARENTS! I say this as a father myself and if my son came to me and said he was talking to some older guy, I'd probably flip and hunt him down, if not just to find out if he's a creep or not. But if you go talk to him first and he is ok with it, there shouldn't be any problem. I see nothing inherently wrong with what you are doing and wouldn't necessarily mind if my son was doing it, but you are going to be the first person they talk to if anything happens to this young man. At any rate, you are doing a good thing by introducing a young person to fishing.

Great advice!

Also, use some paragraphs when you post.

[hooah212002]

Great advice!

Also, use some paragraphs when you post.

Paragraphs are used to separate ideas/topics. Had there been a need to delineate content, I would have used a separate paragraph. However, what I posted was only worthy of a single paragraph since it was all related to the same topic. Single sentence paragraphs are poor form. Thanks anyway.

[roadwarrior]

I was addressing the original poster. These old eyes have difficulty reading long, unbroken script.

[Bluebasser86]

Yeah I would ask him to introduce you to his parents if he's going to be hanging around with you again. It's a really cool story and I know how cool it is to introduce someone to the sport. I've done some mentor programs while I was in school and also Big Brothers Big Sisters and going fishing is always one of the main activities. It's important you at least talk to the parents though so it doesn't turn into a bad experience for you. I had a similar experience while I was fishing a small lake a few years ago.

A young boy was fishing off the bank and asked if he could fish from my boat with me since I was by myself. I told him that was fine but to ask his parents and to get a life jacket because I didn't have an extra. He left for about 10 minutes and came back with a life jacket so I assumed his parents were ok with it. The lake was only 20 acres so it only takes about an hour to fish around but as we're getting back to where his family was camping I could hear people yelling for him. I knew immediately that he hadn't asked but just found a life jacket and came back. It was a really embarrassing situation that could have landed me in a bunch of trouble. I told them I was very sorry and what had happened exactly. They finally calmed down and I decided to call it a day after that. It all could have been prevented if I would have just gone with him and talked to them myself though and a bad situation could have been avoided.