Organizers hoping Fish and Game cluhouse attracts youth

loading...

In his job as a game warden, Dave Georgia ends up talking to plenty of sportsmen and women in the woods of Maine.

And everywhere the Milford man goes, one thing seems to be missing.

The kids.

“In my job, I’m not seeing the kids out recreating. [They’re not] hunting, fishing or trapping, [participating in] the kind of outdoor recreation that you and I grew up with, that our fathers and grandfathers taught us.”

Georgia isn’t satisfied with that. He wants to make a difference. And there are plenty of people who share his sentiment.

Earlier this week, Georgia and Richard Adams showed off the evidence of that commitment to Maine’s outdoor heritage … and to its next generation.

The duo spent (another) morning working on Maine’s Youth Fish and Game Association clubhouse, which is located in Township 32 MD, just 11 miles outside of Milford.

Georgia is the president-elect of the association, whose board of directors appropriately includes a youth in the No. 1 director position.

“This is a community effort,” Georgia said, pointing at the land (donated), the handsome log cabin (ditto), and reeling off a long list of folks who have helped make the club a reality.

If you’re an outdoors enthusiast, you may want to get involved, too. If you aren’t, you may want to ask your kids if they’re interested. And if you doubt that, you may be surprised by the answer to this simple question. Go ahead. Put down your paper for a minute, and ask your kids: Do you want to have your own place to fish, hike and enjoy nature?

The clubhouse sits in a wooded glen on the banks of Pickerel Pond, an 11-acre water that has been liberally stocked with brook trout.

Included in the trout population are a number of whoppers any angler would be proud to catch; Georgia says three 7-pounders – former state brood stock – have already been hauled out of the pond.

The club’s mission is simple: “Our ‘Maine’ objective is to enhance our most precious and valuable resources, our youth and our wildlife.”

Now, you may have heard about the club when it was forming last year. You may have wondered how to get your kids enrolled. And you may have wondered exactly how much it would cost to give your children a gift like this.

The answers to the last question first: Not very much.

“We’re not going to turn kids away,” Georgia said. “A kid can join for a dollar.”

One dollar. That’s it.

With that entry fee they’ll have access to a lot of special events – 11 are already on tap for this summer and fall – and be sure to learn a lot.

Georgia said the area is open to youths all the time (fishing in the pond is limited to those age 15 and younger), and the clubhouse itself can be opened to interested groups like Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops and church youth groups.

According to Georgia, since forming a year ago the club has generated a lot of positive attention … and a concept that seems to be taking off.

“You’ve got to start someplace,” Georgia said. “Really, on the face of it, this might seem [like a] large [undertaking], but this is just a small project, really. It’s chapter one. But just in the last couple weeks we’ve got four or five different places [interested in starting their own youth association].

That encourages Georgia, and the other volunteers who have worked feverishly for the past 12 months.

“These kids are our next game wardens, biologists, foresters, and leaders of fish and game as far as salmon clubs and sports clubs,” Georgia said.

“We’ve kind of got to get kids involved in these activities before they get into some of the other stuff.”

Events planned for Maine’s Youth Fish & Game Association in the near future:

. From May 4-8, biologist Dan McAuley of the U.S. Geological Survey will host a woodcock study. The event will run for about an hour and a half each evening, beginning about a half hour before dark. Woodcock will be captured and banded, and children should be accompanied by an adult.

. On May 10, a state-sanctioned ATV safety course, sponsored by the DIFW, will be held. Children should bring a bag lunch.

. On June 1, the Sunkhaze Stream chapter of Trout Unlimited will hold its youth fly fishing day.

. On June 8, an open house and dedication is set from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Other events to be aware of (and which we’ll talk about in this space or in our Outdoor Notebook as they approach): A Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs event; A bowhunter education course, a hunter safety course, a map and compass orienteering session, a banquet, a demonstration of various working dogs, and a trapper education course.

As you might assume, Maine’s Youth Fish & Game Association is still growing … and donations of all kinds are welcome. If you want to get involved by donating building material, money, or anything else the board of directors may discover the club needs, here’s how you can do so: Call Steve Greenleaf at 732-4402 or Richard Adams at 631-5509. They’ll be glad to talk to you, and you can rest assured that you’ll be helping share our outdoor traditions and heritage with another generation of sportsmen and women.

The gentlemen listed above can likely provide you with information about any of the upcoming events … or they can steer you toward someone who can.

My initial intention was to gather all kinds of ice-out information for you, then tell you what I’d found out in one all-encompassing column (or as close as one can come to “all-encompassing in 24 inches of type).

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I issued a query in Thursday’s editions, looking for people to pass along information from the ponds they see every day.

That information has been a bit slow in trickling in, but in the interest of getting that information out to you in as timely a fashion as possible, I’ll let you know about one area lake this morning.

According to Art Archer, who has lived on Beech Hill Pond since 1992, his home water isn’t quite fishable.

“Right now, the whole lake is still iced in,” Archer wrote. “The ice is extremely black, but I would guess it is still six inches thick in places. Several of us are betting on whether it will last until May 1. I think it is a good bet.”

Archer said he’s kept records since moving to the pond, and the earliest ice out was in 1999 (March 10). The latest: April 28, in 1997.

Still, there are signs of life.

“I heard my first loon this morning, although I have no idea what water it is on,” Archer wrote. “The mallards and mergansers have been back for about two weeks, and are on a small open area by an inlet stream.”

Thanks for the update, Art. Anyone else wishing to help their fellow outdoors enthusiasts by reporting on their own home water can e-mail me at the address below.

Coming up in Tuesday’s column, I’ll take you to the annual opening day breakfast of the Penobscot Salmon Club.

As you probably know, fishing for Atlantic salmon in the Penobscot isn’t legal any more, but that doesn’t stop the local clubs from gathering and talking about old times.

I’ll be there today (Saturday) bright and early, and will keep my eye out for tales from longtime members of the club.

Or, perhaps I’ll find something to write about at the fly fishing day being hosted by the Penobscot Fly Fishers. That event will begin as soon as the salmon club folk complete their appointed rounds.

John Holyoke can be reached at jholyoke@bangordailynews.net or by calling 990-8214 or 1-800-310-8600.