TROUT UNLIMITED HAS ALWAYS TRIED TO INVOLVE OUR YOUTH IN THE CHAPTERS BECAUSE YOUNG MEMBERS ARE NEEDED TO HELP SUSTAIN TU.

EVERY YEAR THE COOSA VALLEY CHAPTER SENDS YOUNG ANGLERS TO TROUT CAMP.

 ZANE HOLCOMB, ETHAN SCOGGIN  AND JOSEPH FINCHER ATTENDED TROUT CAMP A FEW YEARS AGO AND EXCELLED.

IN FACT THEY WERE SO ENTHUSIASTIC AND ADVANCED THAT AFTER GRADUATING FROM TROUT CAMP

BOTH OF THESE FINE ANGLERS WERE ASKED TO RETURN TO THE CAMP AND BECOME "YOUNG

MENTORS" AND HELP TO TEACH THE YOUNGER CAMPERS.  

ZANE HAS BEEN VERY ACTIVE AND RECEIVED THE "YOUNG OF THE YEAR" AWARD FROM THE STATE COUNCIL.

ZANE WAS ALSO SELECTED TO ATTEND THE TEEN SUMMIT. HIS COSTS TO ATTEND ARE BEING COVERED BY THE CHAPTER AND THE GEORGIA STATE COUNCIL.

ABOUT THE TEEN SUMMIT:

  TU teens from across the country, talk about how TU can better engage teen members, learn how to become a TU leader in your community, work on a service project and fish! Spend five days with a group of new friends that love fishing, the outdoors and TU as much as you do.

Who is it for:

Dedicated anglers and conservationists who have shown involvement with TU and have just completed 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade. All summiteers must be TU members before attending the TU Teen Summit; teens can sign up for a TU Teen membership for $12. Not all teens who apply are accepted to the Summit.

You can meet some of our past summiteers and read their thoughts about fishing, conservation, and teens' roles in making it all happen!

Agenda includes:

• conservation tours of the Driftless Area
• leadership skills workshops to bring new TU activities into your community
• conservation science workshops
• fly tying and fly fishing workshops
• fly fishing and conservation biology guest speakers
• a service project at a local stream
• lots of time for hanging out, tying flies, and fishing!

AND OTHER TROUT UNLIMITED YOUTH PROGRAMS:

AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL THERE ARE SEVERAL YOUTH ORIENTED PROGRAMS.

ONE PROGRAM IS "THE HEADWATERS YOUTH PROGRAM".

TU’s Headwaters Youth Program is a comprehensive introduction to trout and salmon conservation for America’s young people, ranging from Stream Explorers as primary students all the way to it’s Five Rivers Program for college students. It encompasses the popular Trout in the Classroom project, as well. By interacting with youth, TU not only hopes to introduce young people to the conservation science behind trout and salmon, but the joy of angling for wild fish in the waters where they belong.

TU’s Headwaters Youth Program helps foster a sense of respect for the natural world and engages young people in hands-on conservation projects in their home waters. 

Encompassing a range of programs and projects known as the Stream of Engagement, Headwaters serves children, teenagers and young adults.  From the nationally-recognized, science-based Trout in the Classroom and Adopt-a-Trout programs to summer fly fishing camps, leadership summits and fly fishing clubs, Headwaters involves young people in TU’s mission to protect and restore the nation’s coldwater resources.

The Headwaters program takes a long-range view of protecting our fisheries.  The youth involved are the future stewards of our country’s rivers.  Educating youth now means that the next generation will be ready, willing and able to sustain TU’s work into the future—continuing to protect, reconnect, and restore North America’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds. 

Simply put, the Headwaters program is the source of tomorrow’s TU.

NATIONAL TU ALSO HAS "THE FIRST CAST PROGRAM".

First Cast is TU's new nationwide initiative to introduce youth to coldwater conservation through angling. The program is the result of a ground-breaking partnership between TU and the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation (RBFF), working on the premise that many of our most dedicated conservationists are also avid anglers.

TU believes that fly fishing is an ideal vehicle for encouraging youth to participate in coldwater stewarship. In order to be a successful fly fisher, the young angler must develop an in-depth understanding of the aquatic habitat. This leads to a feeling of "ownership" of the resource and a concern for its future. As part of TU's efforts to identify and train the next generation of coldwater stewards, youth fly fishing education has become an integral part of our overall youth education agenda.

The First Cast program includes two integral components:

Educational package. First Cast is based on a proven fly fishing education curriculum written by Phil Genova. This flexible curriculum divides the skills of fly fishing into units and lessons and includes step-by step recommendations for organizing classes, events, field trips and community projects. You can download the TU First Cast Manual and Curriculum for information on how to start a program. These documents work in conjunction with Phil Genova's book, First Cast: Teaching Kids to Fly Fish, which can be purchased at major bookstores across the nation.

Expertise. TU members can provide sponsorship and direct instructional support to schools and organizations in communities across the country. A full-time staff member of the TU national office is available to provide technical assistance to TU chapters and work with other affiliated organizations.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT FIRST CAST TRY THESE.

TU First Cast Manual (PDF)

TU First Cast Curriculum (PDF)

Coldwater Conservation Education Guide (PDF)

PHOTO BELOW IS OF ZANE HOLCOMB RECEIVING THE YOUNG OF THE YEAR AWARD FROM MACK MARTIN GEORGIA STATE COUNCIL CHAIRMAN.