Youth Project - Final Report
The final sessions of River Fishing were held in September. For these we asked the Mums and Dads to come along and support their child whilst tuition and coaching was offered by members of AJS FlyFishers. Our members support has been invaluable to the programme.
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The lads have learnt a lot and are now able to fish with the of minimum guidance, they have learnt to handle a fly rod and line and to be able to present a fly to a rising fish. Not that there were many rising fish this year.
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The last session was held on the 26 September and Mums and Dads, and brothers and sisters all came along to a BBQ Day. The lads fishing in the morning session and then around midday we all re-grouped at the lower beat pool near the car park where Ian cooked the usual fare for everyone. The burgers, sausages and chicken were soon demolished as were the splendid salads. Parents had generously paid for the food and members of the Club, who had been part of the programme, were invited free of charge as a thank you for their contributions.
The weather had been very kind to us throughout the many sessions and this day was no exception. The afternoon was perfect to sit and relax after eating the main course; few had room for the deserts that had been baked .... until later that is.
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Some challenges had been organised and the lads were tasked with threading up their rods whilst being blindfolded; pulling 10 metres of line out of the top ring, one scout was only 20cms out!!; casting to some floating rings in the pool adjacent to where we had gathered.
This proved a great success with all, parents were also keen to have a go and had we not had to close the event I guess that some would still be there trying, and trying again to land some fluff into the rings.
Presentation Evening 30 September 2021
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The final event for this year was held at the Scout Hall in Knaresborough. Mums and Dads and the young lads all came along to the event and we were honoured when Sally Sterne, our Riparian Owner, and Pippa, her daughter, came along to present the prizes to the lads.
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After welcoming and introducing the various people who attended Ian showed a Powerpoint Presentation that covered all the things the lads had achieved and taken part in over the past 6 months. This was enjoyed by all, it showed just how much the lads had learnt and been able to apply in their fly fishing.
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Then it was on to the awarding of the prizes; ALL the lads gained a minimum of 2 Awards, the Scouts Fishing Badge and the Angling Trust Fishing Certificate, but we had other awards that celebrated extra effort and commitment, facing and overcoming personal challenges as well as those that celebrated high achievement. There was an unexpected award - The Bob Mortimer Award, presented to the scout who had begun his journey towards achieving Bob's 'falling over' record!!!. The final Award - presented to the Scout who had shown he was" The Most Improved and Competent Fly Fishing Angler" went to Matthew Young.
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As a thank you to those involved Paula Child, Scout Leader, had organised some special gifts to those who had taken a lead role in the programme. Finally Ian was presented with a special award, made by Matthew,- "A massive hook so you can catch bigger fish" were his words. It will have pride of place at home and serve to remind me of the exceptional young lads who have become such good fly fishers. Well Done to you ALL.
The 2021 programme has concluded but it does not end there. Over the summer a review was written about what we had set out to achieve and what we had actually achieved. This was sent to various publishing houses and Trout and Salmon Magazine picked up on the story and will be running a main feature about this programme and AJS FlyFishers in the December Edition, on sale from 9 November 2021.
We hope you are able to get a copy and enjoy the read which also has a section about the history of the Club since it was a Private Syndicate owned by Anthony James Sterne