Youth Fly Fishing Camp 2017
Take a kid fishing? Why not take a kid fly fishing? With the intention of promoting a healthy sport to the younger generation, the idea of a fly fishing camp was mooted and plans were being drafted out in the early September. The FTC team at that time has been actively conducting weekly fly casting lesson at the SS15 field and the respond has been very encouraging. Riding on the momentum, the next step would be to take the new casters fly fishing. To make this event a success, careful planning has to be undertaken; from choosing a suitable location, the type of equipment to use down to the food. FTC managed to get the help of Mr Dron Lee, the renowned fly tyer from Fly Tying Nation, (You can follow his blog for his realistic fishable flies.) and the FFI Casting Instructor, Mr Ben Foo. On the morning of 9 December, the YFFC participants arrived at the private pond in Semenyih. We could see Ben on a small boat casting to the peacock bass in the tranquil pond. After a short briefing, equipment was set up and flies were tied to the tippets. Ben gave us a briefing on the history of peacock bass in Malaysia and the tip on how to best catch them. Then it was off to fishing. The morning session was a bit slow and the fish sluggish as it had rained heavily the day before. But that did not stop the youths from fishing. They were casting non stop and Xuan Lih, on his first fishing trip, caught a respectable tilapia. A surprise catch as out intended quarry was the exotic peacock bass. This catch has converted the happy angler into a lifetime fly fisherman. The next highlight was night fishing. The pond owner had just recently introduced Pacu, another exotic South America fish into the pond. That night, it was a frenzy of pacu. Fish after fish were landed and some of the notable catches were a jelawat, belida and a ketutu. The night fishing is a fishing competition among the participants and the prizes were 2 fly boxes filled with premium flies tied by Mr Dron Lee. It was a great prize and all the participants were fishing hard. It was good fun filled with excitement. The biggest fish award goes to Chen Yong Qi, a fist time fisher with a Pacu of 38 cm. The smallest fish goes to Phyllis Yong with a ketutu of 9 cm. We believe in sharing through experience and during this camp, we share about the proper catch and release methods and conservation and preservation of our world. To allow for themselves to experience the beauty of our world would encourage them to care and protect it. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHVhXsh57QA ~More Gallery Click Here~