Getting Your Kids Involved in the Outdoors
It is amazing how even in the middle of summer you can drive around any town for the most part and you see very little activity as far as kids being outside. Whether it is playing some type of team sport or just simply riding their bikes. What really surprises me is that you don’t see kids covering the banks of the rivers and lakes. With all the great fishing we have in this state there should be no reason that kids are not getting involved in outdoor activities.
There is no doubt, proven by the many studies that they have done, that there are less kids taking up the sports of hunting and fishing. Now days the kids are sitting indoors watching TV and playing video games. This is pure poison. Spending time outside enjoying the things that nature has to offer may be a simple way to spend your time but it is also an extremely healthy way as well.
About ten years ago we moved from living in town in Oshkosh and bought a farm near Berlin. As a kid I had always wanted to live out in the country. So I wanted to raise my kids in the environment that I had always wished for. Don’t get me wrong growing up in Oshkosh I had a great childhood enjoying the Fox River and Lake Winnebago. My mom used to sign me up for baseball and other activities and I would go two or three times but all I really wanted to do was keep fishing every day. I don’t think that there was a summer day that went by that I didn’t ride my bike down to Millers Bay in Menomonee Park or over to the Fox River to fish my day away.
Living out on the farm we started off raising small animals like chickens, turkeys and ducks and geese. The main reason for doing this was to get my kids involved in the outdoors more and give them the responsibility and work ethic to take care of these animals. We are now raising whitetail deer, elk and a few steer calves. Along with this year starting a pheasant hunting club, which the kids take part in by being responsible for taking care of the pheasants and working with the dogs. Since there are less and less places of public land to go and do any productive pheasant hunting we decided to open up our own pheasant club. We would like to see more dads and even moms get their kids involved in the sport of pheasant hunting. By doing this we are offering cut rates for kids 12 to 17 years of age hoping to see more parents bring their kids out. No license is required and there are no limits. Also if you want to expose your children to this sport even earlier you can bring them along to enjoy the hunt while you shoot. They can at least get to experience how the dogs work and spend the day with their family. And while the family is out they can come and see the deer and elk that are raised on the farm.
This year my three boys will be raising 2000 to 4000 pheasants from chicks. This is expected to be a very busy summer for them as well as yet another learning experience. This might sound like a lot of work for three boys that go from ages 6 to 13 but it is also a lot of fun being able to be fortunate enough to experience this way of life. Also in the winter I am pretty much out ice guiding 6-7 days per week so when the weekends come or the kids have a day off I usually bring one of them along to see what is all involved and what ice fishing has to offer. They get to experience an inside view of our ice guiding business. Just in case one of them as they get older might want to take it over. If not that’s okay too.
February is a really great time for ice fishing up on the flowages on the Wisconsin River system. It is the time of year when the walleyes move into shallower water in the north end of the flowage. The perch start to school up and can be caught in numbers. One of the best ways to locate them is getting close to the river channel and staying in 18 to 24 feet of water. These fish hold extremely tight to bottom and it is crucial to use a good locator I prefer my Lowrance M68. This unit is extremely sensitive and can pick these fish up when they are so tight to the bottom. The structure on the bottom making it more difficult due to its muddy bottom. It is very important not to drill a tremendous amount of holes in a small area because these fish will spook. I like to keep my holes spaced out about 15 to 20 yards apart. I don’t like to see three holes in a row allowing all that light go through. It is kind of like this if you only have one hole it lets like a pin prick of light go though and this attracts the fish but by drilling multiple holes in a small area all that light will scatter schools of perch. This applies even in stained water.
The most productive way to catch these fish is using baits like Genz Worms or Fat Boys tipped with wigglers or some days plastics can be extremely deadly. Pounding the bottom with the bait and stirring up the sediment every 5-6 minutes and then holding the bait above bottom about 10 inches and waiting is also another good tactic. I usually give a hole about 15 minutes and then move onto the next. When drilling I will usually drill about a dozen holes again keeping them properly spaced. It seems to be that the best time frame is usually from about 10:00 am to about 2:00 pm.
Whatever it is fishing or hunting your kids can only benefit from these sports so get your kids involved in the things that nature has to offer. Good Luck Fishing
Larry Smith Outdoors!
L & J Smiths Pheasant Hunting Club
Wisconsin Hunting Preserve .com
Wisconsin Walleye Guide