Hooked on Learning

IGFA and National Park Service Team Up for Angling Education

With programs in full swing, the IGFA’s Education team has been collaborating with the National Park Service to expand angling education opportunities across park sites nationwide. What began as a joint effort on the Junior Ranger: Let’s Go Fishing! activity book in 2018 has blossomed into a comprehensive program. The IGFA now provides learn-to-fish events, training for park staff and volunteers, and engages all Fish & Feathers interns in recreational fishing activities, covering all fishing methods and aquatic habitats.

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So far, the results have been fantastic. In April, the IGFA partnered with Ebony Anglers to host a Legacy Camp at Biscayne National Park for 16 young anglers, many of whom were fishing for the first time. Despite windy weather canceling boat plans, shore fishing was a hit, with plenty of mangrove snappers and grunts caught at the Dante Fascell Visitor Center in Homestead, Florida. After lunch, campers explored exhibits and participated in a plankton lab, bringing the food web lesson full circle. Every Legacy Camper was sworn in as a Junior Ranger Angler by day's end.

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The next event took the IGFA Education team out to Colorado, US for the Fish & Feathers training workshop where IGFA educators hosted a fishing clinic on spin fishing for this year's interns, presented on Fish ID and various fishing waters and techniques, and coordinated a public fishing event to give the interns a hands-on experience teaching youth and their families various fishing and birding stations and fishing at Lake Estes. In total, 65 people participated, and 36 Junior Ranger Anglers were sworn in to receive their activity books and badges.

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Administered by Environment for the Americas, Fish & Feathers is a 12-week summer internship program that provides national parks with diverse interns ready to engage with local communities through fishing, birding, and other outdoor recreational activities. The IGFA paired up our new sites for conducting public events through the Passports to Fishing program with sites that were receiving an intern, so they could utilize the materials for future programming. The next event took place on June 1, 2024, at the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park in Astoria, Oregon, US. Twenty-six participants joined for this event, and 11 kids were sworn in as Junior Ranger Anglers who then fished on the Lewis and Clark River where they caught native northern pikeminnows and a largescale sucker. This event was only the beginning of many events for Marisa, the Fish & Feathers intern at the park. She plans to continue working with youth groups to rid the lake on-site of invasive Asian carp, a fish that is decimating native populations.

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The very next weekend on June 8, 2024, was a double-header as IGFA’s Education Director Lisa Morse and IGFA’s Angling Instructor, Emily Hanzlik traveled to Redding, California, US to work with Fish & Feathers intern, Natalia, and host an event at the Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. At the same time, IGFA’s Education Coordinator Nick DeGennaro and Angling Instructor Cristian Gomez headed out to Fire Island National Seashore to work with intern, Hannah, and facilitate a Learn-to-Surf Fish Clinic. The Whiskeytown National Recreation Area event in northern California had the highest participation with 115 people attending and 61 Junior Ranger Anglers sworn in to receive their badges. With a beautiful backdrop to fish, this National Recreation Area stayed true to its name as families spent the day fishing for bluegills and other sunfish, boating, swimming, and enjoying the lake.

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On the other side of the country at Fire Island National Seashore, the event went very well with 24 participants, most of whom were either new to surf fishing or fishing altogether! Anglers had a great time visiting each station learning the basics of fishing before putting their newfound knowledge to the test against striped bass, smooth dogfish, and clearnose skates. Fourteen participants were sworn in as a Junior Ranger Angler. One participant, Liam, age 15, brought his own setup that he had purchased over the winter. He caught his first striped bass ever during the event and said, “I bought this rod and reel during the winter hoping to learn how to surf fish! I saw this event posted and thought it would be perfect.” Axel, age 7, also reeled in his first striped bass. His mom, Rachel, said, “I wanted to thank you again so much for the event yesterday. My son had so much fun and learned a lot. He can't stop talking about the experience. I don't know if he would have ever been able to learn surf fishing without this event. Everyone was so knowledgeable and kind. Thank you again so much for taking the time to teach my son.” Fire Island National Seashore has their next fishing clinic scheduled for Sunday, June 16, 2024, and many onlookers and current participants made their way to the visitor center eager to sign up.

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The IGFA will round out events for the 2024 summer season at Gulf Islands National Seashore, Florida, US later this month on June 29, 2024, where participants will be learning how to surf fish. Every park has been and will be trained the day prior to the event and provided a Passports to Fishing kit to continue hosting fishing programs at their respective sites. Fishing experience and skill levels varied amongst all individuals and some volunteers were learning how to tie their very first knots!

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This program has taken the IGFA Education team to some of the most stunning places in the country, but more importantly, it has provided our team with opportunities to grow as educators and as anglers as each park site has pushed our levels of expertise to new heights to ensure these events are a success for participants so that they walk away with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to continue fishing either as an individual angler or as an entire family. The IGFA will be working on an online training platform to help park staff and volunteers who are not well-versed in the field of angling but who would like to offer these programs as part of their recreation opportunities within their park site.

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The IGFA would like to thank the National Park Foundation for their continued support of the IGFA’s angling education initiatives to continue expanding recreational fishing opportunities in public lands across the country. We would also like to thank the National Park Service staff and volunteers who we have enjoyed working with at each event as well as Environment for the Americas for providing intern opportunities to the next generation of leaders, and all the 2024 Fish & Feathers interns, who we have trained and have now seen in action at their respective park sites. There are many great programs to come from their leadership, and we wish them continued success in their future careers.

 

We cannot thank our supporters enough for helping the IGFA to teach this many youth around the world and countless more to come! If you would like to get involved in any of these programs, please contact IGFA Director of Education, Lisa Morse, at [email protected].

Thank you to all the IGFA Education Program supporters!