(Carp) Fishing with kids (part 1 - introduction)

Fishing with kids. Much has been written on this topic; some good (I agree with it) and some not so good (the author was a moron). Most of these works have been on fishing in general, that is, how to get kids to have a good time fishing. The idea is generally as follows: get the kid(s) to catch fish with as few frustrations as possible. This is indeed sound advice, but I don't know that it is the whole story as "fishing" to me at least, involves all aspects of aquatic ecology. These articles are based off of personal experience, and they are a work in progress with the title something like: how to make your kids addicted to fishing from an early age.

Even a mid 20 grass carp is a huge fish when you only weigh 20 something pounds yourself!

I have read that some people advocate starting your (or someone else's) youngster fishing at 5 or some such ridiculously old age - don't listen to them! Luckily this is not at the top of search results - at least the one I did for "kids fishing age". I say you can take your kids fishing from a few weeks old by investing in a baby carrying device of some sort. This allows you to keep your child with you and allows them to see what you are doing/sleep which is really important for everyone. Just keep a few things in mind: don't get in a boat and don't get in waders with a bay strapped to you. For general fishing here is a PDF from takemefishing.org if you are looking for some ideas on taking kids into the wonderful world of fishing. 

Next week I will in part two I will talk about things you might want to take to make you fishing trip long and happy. Stay tuned!