Launching the IGFA Youth Fly Fishers Program: Clinics, Camps, and Fly Fishing Basics

 

The IGFA Education team has made great strides with the development of a Youth Fly Fishers program. In partnership with like-minded organizations, this program develops and implements in-person clinics and camps as well as turnkey “fly fishing clinics in a box” programs. These programs will be implemented within the structure of the highly successful “Passports to Fishing” program, and will also be supported by the creation of an online tutorial called “Fly Fishing Basics”. Many of these programs will be fully launched and implemented in 2025, these all stem from our IGFA Trustee, Andy Mill, leading the way in educating anglers on the joys of fly fishing and the great outdoors. 

During the initial year of this program back in 2022, the IGFA donated fly rod and reel outfits, in conjunction with Greys, to select groups located in Florida, Wyoming, and Colorado, USA to host in-person youth fly fishing camps. Thanks to Greys, we were able to outfit youth across the country with fly gear and get them started on their outdoor journeys.

Here's a recap of some of our recent successes and what's next on the horizon! 

Jackson Hole, Wyoming 

In Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the IGFA continues to build our relationship with the Jackson Hole Fly Fishing School (JHFFS) and get more kids introduced to the sport. This year, JHFFS was able to host beginner fly fishing seminars every other week throughout the summer, reaching nearly 50 children – more than double the number from the previous year. On top of that, the IGFA worked very closely with a neighboring nonprofit, Coombs Outdoors, to offer a 3-day trout school for nine children that were the recipients of a generous donation from the One Fly Morton Memorial Scholarship.

Over the course of three days, participants learned skills to become independent anglers and river stewards fly fishing from shore and by boat. Thanks to the IGFA, the nine fly rods used in the camp were then donated to Coombs Outdoors so that they could house them as reserves for students to check out.

Basalt, Colorado

In Basalt, Colorado, the IGFA worked with the Roaring Fork Fly Fishing Club as well as the Roaring Fork Conservancy to provide opportunities for young people and veterans to the learn how to tie flies and fly fish. In conjunction with this program, the IGFA has also bolstered their education capabilities internally. Education Director Lisa Morse, Education Coordinator Nick DeGennaro, Youth Angling Instructor Joanna Olczyk, and Angling Educator Emily Hanzlik worked with Christina Medved, Director of Community Outreach for the Roaring Fork Conservancy, at Rocky Mountain National Park to obtain their Level 1 certification to teach youth to fly fish through the National Fishing in Schools Program. This training ended with actual fly fishing in private lakes thanks to the generous and remarkable crew at Sasquatch Fly Fishing. The IGFA thanks everyone involved for making this training a success!

Saint Petersburg, Florida

This past April, in Saint Petersburg, Florida, the IGFA was able to attend one of the outings for this chapter of The Mayfly Project, another fellow nonprofit that uses fly fishing as a catalyst to mentor and support children in foster care. Kids spent the day at Fort DeSoto Park fly fishing for warm water species and seine netting to learn more about the forage that fish were feeding on. Each of the children in the program this year went home with a fly rod and reel donated by the IGFA and Greys.

Since then, this chapter has been heavily impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, so the IGFA and Trustee Andy Mill are already working to help replenish materials that were lost. The IGFA is also working with Tim Elms, one of the lead mentors of the St. Petersburg Chapter, to not only get more gear for the children of 2025’s program but also to film some tutorials for the online “Fly Fishing Basics” course launching in 2025.

The Bahamas

For future programming, the IGFA will utilize Roaring Fork’s 3-day curriculum as a guideline for next year’s camp in North Abaco, Bahamas. This camp will be catered to the older youth of the Cooper’s Town community who have expressed great interest in learning more about fly fishing. Fly fishing was introduced at this year’s camp, but it was a brief introduction. Next year, a dedicated 3-day fly fishing camp will do a deep dive and fully immerse these kids in the sport, we are looking forward to it!

More Fly Fishing Education on the Horizon

The IGFA’s various education programs have been growing exponentially in the past five years, moving forward, a strong focus will be placed on fly fishing education resources to launch two new programs in 2025. The two programs will be an online course for “Fly Fishing Basics”, that will be free to the public, and a Passports to Fly Fishing program, which is modeled after the successful Passports to Fishing program which focuses on spin fishing.

Currently, education stations to teach about gear, flies, knots, casting techniques, and ethical angling practices are in the final stages of development. The IGFA is also working with Cortland Line Company and various other corporate partners and likeminded organizations to create this all-encompassing fly fishing education program.

The IGFA would like to thank all of our supporters and dedicated partners for their hard work in helping us teach and inspire the fly fishers of tomorrow.