Garrison Hilliard
July 21st, 2004, 06:38 PM
Apparently, family fishing is on the rise
July 21, 2004
The note usually comes from a dad in his 30s or 40s with a young son. Occasionally, it's mom. I know what they feel. One day, the half-pint pedals a plastic trike around, the next he stares you in the eye.
Time sneaks up. And some Norman Rockwellian corner of the brain kicks in, "Hey, I'm supposed to take him fishing.''
I've had an unusual increase in questions from parents, particularly from the North Side, wanting to know how to start their kids fishing.
Others are noticing, too. In June, a lakefront regular offhandedly mentioned how happy he was to see kids fishing again on Lake Michigan.
Something good is going on with family fishing in Chicago.
I suspect it's a combination of the perch boom in June, the accumulated effect of the 12,000 kids Bob Long Jr. annually runs through his Chicago Park District fishing program, good publicity about plans to return Northerly Island to the public and a blip in city society, where professional dads in the city are reaching a certain age with their sons.
On Monday, Nick Prevas offered a partial explanation as we chatted on a salmon outing on Sagittarius Charters.
"[Dads'] careers are going [well], and now they have time for their sons,'' he said.
Prevas has owned Superior Sports on the Northwest Side for 20 years. His regular customers come from the surrounding neighborhoods and suburbs, but he has seen an influx from the Lincoln Park/Lake View/Elston/Clybourn nexus. All right, for the lack of better words, yuppie dads.
Some are directed to Superior by the fly shop near Diversey Harbor. The fly shop is great for dad's river-runs-through-it trip to Montana, but not for starting a kid fishing.
"I have more this year than any other,'' Prevas said. "Every once in a while, I get a single mom with her son, which I like to see, too.''
That's a change from the previous generations. More city moms are taking kids fishing.
"When I really pay attention is a single mom; it used to always be the dad,'' said Henry Palmisano of Henry's Sports and Bait in Bridgeport.
Inexperienced dads or moms, this is the first of two parts on how to take your kid fishing around Chicago.
Prevas sets up both the parent and child. That's important. The parent should fish, too, not just watch.
For the kid, Prevas suggests a Zebco 33 spincasting reel and a two-piece, pistol-grip rod. For the parent, he suggests a two-piece 6- or 61/2-foot spinning rod with a Shimano 2000 spinning reel loaded with 8-pound monofilament.
For occasional anglers, ease of storage with a two-piece rod outweighs the superior handling of a one-piece.
"They'll fish a couple of times a year, and they put it in the closet the rest of the time,'' he said.
The kid's rig should total about $30; Dad's about $40. Throw in stuff like a minnow bucket and tackle box, and figure $100 to outfit the adult and kid.
Go to your local tackle stop (Superior, Henry's, Ed Shirley Sports, Riverside, Triangle, JJ's, etc.), not a chain store, to buy the first setup. The couple of dollars more you spend will be made up with experience and hands-on knowledge.
"I encourage the adult to get a license to set an example,'' Prevas said. "I put the guilt thing on them.''
Folks, it's $13 for an annual resident fishing license. Buy the damn license, the money helps fund fishing.
"I set up the kids with crappie rigs,'' Prevas said. "That's a no-brainer. Back in June, we sent them to Montrose or Navy Pier, and they were catching perch or rock bass. That makes heroes out of dads. It is important to make the kid successful so the dad looks like a star.''
As both an outdoor writer and a dad about to teach his third kid to fish, I'll tell you there's nothing better than a kid's first fish.
"[Parents] have always been glad,'' Prevas said. "They come back and say, 'I wish I had done this sooner.' I think this is terrific. They come back, and they need more tackle boxes, more stuff.''
Yeah, it's the stuff memories are made of.
"Dad has to make the time,'' Prevas said. "Nobody has the time anymore. You have to make the time.''
It is time.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/outdoors/cst-spt-out21.html
July 21, 2004
The note usually comes from a dad in his 30s or 40s with a young son. Occasionally, it's mom. I know what they feel. One day, the half-pint pedals a plastic trike around, the next he stares you in the eye.
Time sneaks up. And some Norman Rockwellian corner of the brain kicks in, "Hey, I'm supposed to take him fishing.''
I've had an unusual increase in questions from parents, particularly from the North Side, wanting to know how to start their kids fishing.
Others are noticing, too. In June, a lakefront regular offhandedly mentioned how happy he was to see kids fishing again on Lake Michigan.
Something good is going on with family fishing in Chicago.
I suspect it's a combination of the perch boom in June, the accumulated effect of the 12,000 kids Bob Long Jr. annually runs through his Chicago Park District fishing program, good publicity about plans to return Northerly Island to the public and a blip in city society, where professional dads in the city are reaching a certain age with their sons.
On Monday, Nick Prevas offered a partial explanation as we chatted on a salmon outing on Sagittarius Charters.
"[Dads'] careers are going [well], and now they have time for their sons,'' he said.
Prevas has owned Superior Sports on the Northwest Side for 20 years. His regular customers come from the surrounding neighborhoods and suburbs, but he has seen an influx from the Lincoln Park/Lake View/Elston/Clybourn nexus. All right, for the lack of better words, yuppie dads.
Some are directed to Superior by the fly shop near Diversey Harbor. The fly shop is great for dad's river-runs-through-it trip to Montana, but not for starting a kid fishing.
"I have more this year than any other,'' Prevas said. "Every once in a while, I get a single mom with her son, which I like to see, too.''
That's a change from the previous generations. More city moms are taking kids fishing.
"When I really pay attention is a single mom; it used to always be the dad,'' said Henry Palmisano of Henry's Sports and Bait in Bridgeport.
Inexperienced dads or moms, this is the first of two parts on how to take your kid fishing around Chicago.
Prevas sets up both the parent and child. That's important. The parent should fish, too, not just watch.
For the kid, Prevas suggests a Zebco 33 spincasting reel and a two-piece, pistol-grip rod. For the parent, he suggests a two-piece 6- or 61/2-foot spinning rod with a Shimano 2000 spinning reel loaded with 8-pound monofilament.
For occasional anglers, ease of storage with a two-piece rod outweighs the superior handling of a one-piece.
"They'll fish a couple of times a year, and they put it in the closet the rest of the time,'' he said.
The kid's rig should total about $30; Dad's about $40. Throw in stuff like a minnow bucket and tackle box, and figure $100 to outfit the adult and kid.
Go to your local tackle stop (Superior, Henry's, Ed Shirley Sports, Riverside, Triangle, JJ's, etc.), not a chain store, to buy the first setup. The couple of dollars more you spend will be made up with experience and hands-on knowledge.
"I encourage the adult to get a license to set an example,'' Prevas said. "I put the guilt thing on them.''
Folks, it's $13 for an annual resident fishing license. Buy the damn license, the money helps fund fishing.
"I set up the kids with crappie rigs,'' Prevas said. "That's a no-brainer. Back in June, we sent them to Montrose or Navy Pier, and they were catching perch or rock bass. That makes heroes out of dads. It is important to make the kid successful so the dad looks like a star.''
As both an outdoor writer and a dad about to teach his third kid to fish, I'll tell you there's nothing better than a kid's first fish.
"[Parents] have always been glad,'' Prevas said. "They come back and say, 'I wish I had done this sooner.' I think this is terrific. They come back, and they need more tackle boxes, more stuff.''
Yeah, it's the stuff memories are made of.
"Dad has to make the time,'' Prevas said. "Nobody has the time anymore. You have to make the time.''
It is time.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/outdoors/cst-spt-out21.html