My grandson Caleb and I were privileged to attended the GRTU Youth Camp again this year.  This was our second time to attend. The camp goes from Friday-Sunday and is hosted by the Rio Guadalupe Resort. This year there were 21 youth at the camp. I think there were 6/7 girls and 14/15  boys.

Caleb flew over from Jackson, MS, on Thursday. He and I had planned to drive over and fish Friday morning and afternoon before the camp. But there was a weather alert for high winds (20mph sustained) most of the day Friday. So we had to nix that idea. But in looking at the weather report on Thursday evening, it looked like the wind might die down some after about 3:00 Friday afternoon. So, we left Sugar Land Friday morning, hoping to get in a fishing session that evening. Of course, we made our customary stop at Buc-ee’s, this time for a sliced pork sandwich and some beef jerky for snacks through the weekend.

We arrived at the Guadalupe Rio Resort and fortunately we were able to check into our room early. We put on our waders and gear, rigged a couple of rods, and headed to the river—one rod with a nymph rig and one with a dry fly. I wanted to take Caleb to a hole that I had fished earlier in the week. That day, there had been a nice Caddis hatch about 4:30 to 5:00 in the evening and I had caught six (and lost two) on a dry fly. I was hoping I could put Caleb on some rising fishing and that he could have his first experience at catching a trout on a dry fly. Unfortunately when we were wading to the hole, we noticed four fishermen were already there. But there was a caddis hatch! So we fished awhile in a different spot but there were no rising fish. About 5:15 the four fisherman cleared out and we made our way up to the hole to give it a shot before the sun set. A caddis hatch was still going and we could see fish rising. So, I got out the dry fly rig (size 18 or 20) and showed Caleb the basics. He caught on quickly and was able to net two, and he missed a third. We were off to a good start. We topped off the evening with pizza at The Wicked Pizza.

A highlight of the camp on Saturday is helping with the trout stocking. The fish come on a truck from Missouri. This is always a fun experience for the kids. They love being a part of the process (carrying fish in buckets from the truck to the river), in addition to just being in the water. I think we had three kids “fall in” and get wet. But they just got up and kept on going. Being young is nice! After the stocking, we met back at the retreat center for a lunch of brisket (it had been smoking overnight), sausage, jalapeño macaroni and cheese, and green beans.

The afternoon was filled with various classes such as:

• Knots and rigging
• River ecology
• Fly Fishing 101
• Fly casting instruction
• Being a TPWD game warden
• Panel discussion of fly fishing industry representatives
• Fly tying

Dinner was burgers and hot dogs. The weather was just gorgeous for the day—I think the temperature may have been in the low 60s.

But the weather was to change on Sunday. We woke up to about to about 27 degrees with an 18 degree feel temp. The youth put their waders and wore them to breakfast. After breakfast it was time to meet their guides and fish. There were about 15 guides with their rafts/boats lined up to help. A shout out to them as they all volunteer their time for this camp! I had arranged for Caleb to be matched with Judson Cole as he is one of my favorite guides. Because of the cold temps, everything started about an hour later than normal. And because of the cold, most of the groups came in from fishing a little earlier than normal. It was brutally cold—not the best fishing conditions. Not too many fish were caught, but the kids still seemed to enjoy the experience. Although, one guide found a hole of hungry fish and the youth with him caught 32! I think he found a hole where the state stockers had been put on on Thursday. As the guides and youth were arriving back at camp, the cooks had hot chocolate waiting. After the kids warmed up, and swapped stories, it was time for a fabulous lunch of beef and chicken fajitas.

Caleb and I had planned to stay over until Monday, doing some fishing Sunday evening and Monday morning. But with the extreme temperatures and bad weather around the state, the camp shut down a little early, and we decided to head home. The camp coordinator, Dakus Geeslin, shared that this was the coldest GRTU Youth Camp they had ever had.

I would highly recommend that our TFF members consider taking a child or grandchild to this camp. Our GRTU chapter sponsors it. Dakus Geeslin and his team of volunteers put on a wonderful camp for the kids—good fellowhip, great food, excellent learning opportunities, and quality time on the water. For more information check out the GRTU website: www.grtu.org