Today, the kids in Phippsburg have their first “no school” day. No it’s not because of snow, but “personal development” for the teachers. As a result, I woke the kids at 5:00 AM to catch some daylight fishing action while the tide was low.

Alex Fernald caught a small striper right off, then repeated the process, but with a much nicer fish. This time, the striper peeled line off the reel and the battle lasted 10 minutes before Alex brought the fish to the bank.

This fish measured 30 inches and is the largest striper Alex has ever caught. Shortly thereafter, Alex asked to go home,… “my hands hurt from all the reeling”.

Note the glow of pride emanating from his father as Alex displays the catch for the camera.

Charlie Gill IV boated  a nice 22″ schoolie. Congratulations Charlie… Nice fish!

Junior Division participants… We’ve got some nice prizes to give away, so you kid’s need to get out there and fish hard this last weekend. Let’s see some big fish registered!!!

Several posts back, I wrote a piece called The Observant Fisherman, which discussed paying attention to the bait and creepy crawly things that stripers love to feed on.

Connor Guth, one of junior anglers, was doing a little fishing on Sunday.  When the action was slow, he started poking around the shoreline. He was lifting seaweed and flipping rocks, when out scurried this little guy. Surprise!

Pretty cool find! Get the butter…

Did you know, in the US more people fish than play golf? According to the Association of Sports Apparel Manufactures that is a fact! And why wouldn’t that be true? We have an abundance of fishing habitat in the US and the cost of entry is relatively cheap, especially so when compared to the expense of eighteen holes of golf, a cart and lunch.

Fishing represents a great recreational resource that puts people in touch with nature, it’s good exercise and offers the opportunity for individuals to share meaningful experiences with friends and family.

Getting out for an afternoons fishing with some of your colleagues from work can be a great opportunity to form close friendships outside the office environment. And it’s always fun to share the adventure.

Getting the kid’s out fishing is another opportunity for family fun. With younger children, the experience can be a trial and exercise in personal control. Some things that really help engage the kids are to give them responsibilities and teach them things like how to tie off the boat, change lures, pull the anchor, and once engaged, the kid’s typically have a great time. These activities are very meaningful and represent good clean fun.

Their’s also the opportunity for dad to show the boys how it’s done. Nice fish!

In the Junior Division, children ages 16 and younger will compete for some really nice prizes. The prizes represent tackle and gear donated by the differing tackle shops that are “Official Registration Sites”.

To qualify for prizes and to make it fun for the children participating in the Junior Division, the minimum size requirement for stripers is 24 inches. Juniors will still have to meet the photo submission requirements, but the reduced size requirement will make it easier for kids to catch a fish that qualifies. And when they register a fish, they can view the photos once posted on the tournament website.

To be awarded prizes, anglers must be in attendance at the Awards Ceremony. This event will be a fun experience for the children and parents as we have a good deal of tackle and gear to give away to youth participants. So please plan to attend and to bring the kids.

In today’s world, things are a lot differnt from when I was a child. When I look around, I see kid’s with Ipods hanging from their ears and GameBoys glued to their fingers. These electronic games, computers and TV form a foundation of sendentary activities which hardly promote a healthy lifestyle.

Getting youth engaged in activities which promote fitness and physical exercise are necessary. Outdoor adventures offer children the opportunity to get off the couch and it puts them in touch with nature. Fishing is the perfect sport that offers parents the opportunity to teach children about boating, nature and conservation, while engaging the kid’s in simple, fun activities.

I recently took my children, along with one of their friends, fishing at Fort Popham. It was a pleasant evening. We explored the fort and saw a rainbow, seals and boats, while fishing for stripers. The fishing was slow, but that didn’t seem to matter. The kid’s were happy to be outdoors and totally engrossed in the act of fishing. In all reality, they spent little time fishing. Mostly, they changed lures, waded in the surf and ran around like happy little indians. These are the  type of memories I have of my youth and which helped shape my love of the outdoors. I hope they grow to value outdoors and nature as much as I do.

The 17 Rivers Striper Tournament promises to be a fun event. We anticipate many anglers will participate, a great number of fish will be caught and someone will win the grand prize of $2,500.

As tournament organizers we wanted to create a structure within this event to encourage the participation of youth in outdoor activities, and in particular, fishing.

The Junior Division is open to all youth - ages 16 and younger. We’ve solicited pledges for tackle, gear and gift certificates from all the regional tackle shops and have a great deal of prizes to award those junior participants. And we intend to spread it around!

To encourage youth participation, we’ve discounted the entry fee for junior anglers, 60% below that of the adult. The cost to participate in the Junior Division is only $20.00! This cost is less that the snacks you’d purchase when you take your children to the movies… and the kids can fish for the entire month of September.

Furthermore, a Special Discount applies for parents. Register in the Adult Division and sign your child up to participate for FREE! We have created this discounted structure to encourage parents to take their children fishing and make it a family activity. We feel strongly that youth’s involvement in outdoor activities, as a family, is of importance. These early life experiences can leave favorable lasting impressions on both the child and the parent. And exposing children to nature at an early age is important too.

This Parent/Child discount offer is also extended to those individuals who act as mentors for children. Please contact Big Brothers - Big Sisters for information about additional discounts offered through their regional programs.