Written By Frank Geremski
Photos by Susan Blackburn Photography
(unless Noted)
Parents turn your STRUGGLES WITH PHONES around and get everyone outside!
One of Upstate NY’s greatest gifts is the endless resource of freshwater! With two easy DIGITAL AIDs, you’ll be able to get your kids interested in no time!
Fishing, or as I say… “Catching!” is the perfect Upstate NY hobby for your kids…
or the kid in you!
Why Fishing?
Upstate NY has all these beautiful waterways, with excellent public access through fishing easements and NY State Parks. Plus, our local counties, towns, villages, and well-meaning non-profit groups supplement this with endless access to boat/canoe/kayak launches and open-air community space… Fishing is the perfect go-to endeavor to get outdoors on the water!
And think of all the things it can lead to… boating, kayaking, canoeing, birding, outdoor photography, hiking, sunning, even tree hugging!! Finding and exploring new fishing spots or hiking to a waterway is just a gateway to countless related outdoor passions, and I know this firsthand.
The two digital aides we’ll share show you the best way to take advantage of these outdoor gems. It will save you money, provide prime fishing access, some real educational experience, and get you started “catching!” More than ever, we need an outdoor release that re-connects us back to nature. Fishing and related “woods and water” pursuits have been providing this fun wilderness recreation for ages. This outdoor culture and our endless lakes/rivers/streams/ponds were the original attractions to the Saratoga/Lake George area. The forefathers of our state anticipated this and set aside huge parcels of land for us to enjoy, such as the 6-million-acre Adirondack State Park.
Competitive Sports certainly provide our youth with physical outlets, but fishing, and these related outdoor adventures, are less structured, more intimate skill builders. It’s a totally different connection, and much better at bridging generational gaps. I played sports with some success, but excelled at fishing, and these connected outdoor activities. My dad took me fishing often while I was young and thoroughly taught me boat fishing. During the winter we would tie spinner rigs in the basement and make our own sinkers. We bonded much better over fishing than sports, an activity that lasted his whole life.
From day one, my dad put me on MAP DUTY, and would insist I brought us back to port, at first to the chagrin of my Uncle Dick, who I was also bonding and learning from. My head was on fishing, yet they were teaching me initial standards of BOATING and NAVIGATION. My fishing transitioned to different outdoor hobbies when I started canoeing/hiking/fishing in the Adirondack back-country ponds as a teen with my friends. Now I was learning ORIENTATION with TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS and a COMPASS, taking me deep into the Adirondack wilderness seeking out seldom fished ponds for brook trout. Little did I realize these route-finding missions to secret fishing holes tangibly developed skills that would help me in my career as an Air Traffic Controller. My initial navigation skills were honed by fishing maps and trail guides, now in retirement I am a NYS licensed Hiking and Fishing Guide, go figure...Real life skills learned on fishing trips.
DEC.NY.GOV -
A Digital Game Changer!!
Anyone interested in fishing- and many other outdoor adventures will be incredibly impressed with the scope that dec.ny.gov covers. It is an interactive virtual library of EVERYTHING OUTDOORS in New York. This digital aide includes maps, tactics and features on countless fishing/outdoor locations. For young people this is a positive, interesting digital “supplement” like those games they like playing!
Dec.ny.gov opens a completely new hobby that is occurring in REEL-TIME. Transparent fun info about updated trout stocking and other events occurring around the state - or you can filter to our immediate Region 5 - for cool stuff happening right here! For example, locally Saratoga State Park has an awesome Creek-side Classroom next to the amply stocked Geyser Creek. Likewise, Moreau State Park has a fantastic year-round wilderness educational hub near the park’s beach, Moreau Lake is a peaceful motor-less fishing hot-spot. These facilities serve as the basis for each park’s multi-faceted outdoor events. They are regularly posted on dec.ny.gov and once signed up these activities will be sent regularly via email.
Angler Achievement Awards, volunteering for fishing surveys, and a plethora of interactive conservation and wildlife topics keeping youths not only interested but involved. HuntFishNY is a phone app associated with dec.ny.gov that also is consistent with modern day info gathering, great for any aged outdoor enthusiast and is a positive digital influence.
My favorite money saver is the Empire Pass for $72 which gives unlimited yearly entry to NYS Parks, forest preserves and boat launches. A significant amount of trout stocking occurs at these spots, and your new digital outdoor wizard can time the adventure to the fishing conditions and reports on the HuntFishNY app or dec.ny.gov. These parks are a perfect starter spot for beginners and families because of the safe managed park environment and professional staff. With hiking trails, swimming areas and facilities, there is something for everyone!
Free Fishing Days, between June 27-28th, meaning no license is needed for those over 16. An inexpensive way to “give it a cast.” (Sept. 26 and Nov.11th are also free fishing days).
NYSOGA -
Our 2nd Digital Aid!!
New York State Outdoor Guide Association (nysoga.com) is NYS’s oldest and largest guiding organization - since 1891 - with over several hundred active guides in a wide array of outdoor adventures. These are your “coaches” in Upstate NY for wilderness sports. A safe and successful first trip is the best way to get our youth hooked on fishing.
Starting with a guide(coach) will allow you to utilize the guide’s tackle, then act as your equipment consultant, just like other sports. An initial entry to the sport with a qualified expert will likely produce much better early fishing results, teach ethics of the outdoor culture, and share how weather affects fishing and water-sports safety. The tutoring from this trip is the foundation to start your fishing life. And catching some lunkers and having a higher “fishing IQ” when you start fishing without your coach, makes a lifetime of difference.
What makes NYSOGA’s digital aide so dynamic? You can scroll and select over 29 different activities…then view all the professional guides’ profiles in your region to select the best fit for you. Wouldn’t you love that option for the soccer teams, matching the coach’s strengths and expertise for the experience you want?!
Whether you are new to fishing, the Saratoga area, or just want an enhanced fishing experience, hiring a professional guide provides hidden value. Access to the area’s lakes is becoming crowded, costly and complicated, especially on weekends. Your family’s safety, time, and peace of mind - by booking a certified guide, with comprehensive safety training - is an inherent benefit to consider. We mentioned the trout stockings listed in ny.dec.gov, but we also have nice populations of naturally reproducing trout spread throughout the region. Large-mouth, small-mouth bass, northern pike, pickerel, and large schools of kid friendly perch and pan-fish are peppered throughout our many waterways, but where do you start without direction? An expert local guide will help you dial in on the correct species and areas to target, and increase your knowledge for future outings. Starting with a professional will help everyone bypass early mistakes and share basics and tactics, creating a shortcut to long-term angling success. Learning these skills of this positive hobby correctly from my dad and uncle made a huge impact on my life, and I hope this fishing passion finds your kids this summer. It’s catchy.