The morning drive to Godfry Ill was a little tricky in the dark and close to 0 visibility driving up the River Road out of Alton. We arrived at the Scout camp just before 7 am, drove around a bit, and eventually found our spot for the day, a nice spot down by the lake.  After setting up our casting area, and quick briefing by Mike B on what we needed to teach and some tips on how to teach them, we were ready for the kids.

Our primary responsibility was to teach the fly casting skills required to earn the Fly Fishing Merit Badge, however, we ended up splitting our time and working lakeside helping Scouts catch their first fish on a flyrod. (another requirement for the merit badge) We were just 2 of the 8 or so stations around the camp that the Scouts had to visit to complete their merit badge requirements.  It proved to be very rewarding because for some kids, this was their first experience fishing.

Fishing started out tough in the chilly morning with the heavy fog, and there were only a few fish caught right away.  We think the cold front the came through the day before must have put the fish down. We were hoping once the fog was gone and the sun came out and warmed things up, our luck would change. The fog did burn off, and the sun came out, but the fishing was still tough throughout the morning.

Around noon, the lunch bell rang, and we headed up to the mess hall for lunch.  In the morning, Scouts were required to clean and prepare a trout for lunch. (“fun fact” The trout came from one of our FATC sponsors, Westover Farms;http://westoverfarms.com/).  Scouts had prepared trout in a foil pack.  After lunch, we headed back to the lake to continue with our teaching and “guiding” duties. Fishing was still tough, however, all was good and we ended up with nearly 100% of the Scouts catching at least 1 fish on a flyrod. Success.

Overall, it was a fantastic day, and we all had a great time.

Next time you see one of the Scout events on the calendar, consider joining us. We always have a great time.