Mark Hocutt rarely says “no” to his son – when he asks to go fishing, that is.

Graham caught the fishing bug early last year after catching his first 15-inch flounder, just big enough to take home and eat for dinner.

“He was so surprised and excited,” Hocutt says. “He didn’t know there would be anything on the end. He was reeling away and just beamed when the fish came out of the water.”

Now every time the 4-year-old sees anyone fishing he wants to join them, so his dad is happily readily prepared.

The John’s Island dad carries in his truck all the equipment needed to spontaneously fish – a rod and reel, rubber shrimp, tackle box, a dip net and cooler – just in case they decide to pull over.

“It gives me an excuse to fish. Plus I get to spend quality time outside having fun with my son.”

They fish at least once a week – if not more – and have a wet line off most bridges, docks, piers and neighborhood ponds in the tri-county area.

Fishing is a great bonding experience for children and adults.

“Fishing with a mother, father or grandparent is a memory children will carry with them for a lifetime,” says Michael Willis, communications director for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. “I’d say the most important thing is to get out there and do it, go fishing. Get your kids out of the virtual world and into the real world.”

Fritz von Kolnitz, owner of Adventure Outdoors, agrees and says it also gives them something to do to occupy their free time.

“My mother used to always say that an idol mind is the devil’s playground – especially with me.”

And fishing isn’t expensive, von Kolnitz says.

“It’s not something you have to continually throw a lot of money at.”

Follow the rules

Hocutt suggests parents do a little homework prior to fishing – obtain a saltwater recreational fishing license for everyone age 16 and older and take note of state regulations, including size limits, which are displayed at public fishing piers.

Hocutt says Graham “wants to take everything we catch home and put it in his fish tank,” even if it’s too small to keep. “I have to explain that to him every time we catch something.”

Also, be aware of safety issues such as falling off a dock – or the possible presence of alligators, if fishing in a lake.

Capt. Harry Demosthenes, owner of Drum Runner Charters, says life jackets are nonnegotiable on his boat. It’s the law. The rule is they can’t go until life jackets are on.

In order to try to avoid meltdowns, Demosthenes suggests parents let kids pick out their own life jackets, as he did with his 4-year-old daughter Emilie.

“It gave her ownership of it. She’s proud of it. She wants to wear it more.”

Von Kolnitz, who takes kids out in the boat all the time, says to keep an eye on everyone in the boat at all times.

“Usually when you have kids in the boat you try to keep them all in front of the console so that you can see them and so you don’t have anyone standing or sitting behind you.”

Fishhooks can also be a safety issue, Willis says.

“Small kids, especially those lacking fishing experience, need adult help and supervision. Adults should assist with hooks and baiting hooks, until the kids are proficient and comfortable with it.”

As a shore-bound angling parent, Hocutt also warns parents to stay vigilant even when their children are fishing from land or a dock. It’s a good idea for small children to wear a life jacket at the water’s edge, in case they trip and fall off a dock or the bank.

“Just keep a really close eye on them,” Hocutt says.

Tools of the trade

Demosthenes says special rods aren’t required when fishing with children. Like most charter captains and experienced anglers, he tends to use the simplest and easiest-to-use rods, reels and tackle when children are onboard.

“I think any fishing rod will do, just make sure you have fresh line.”

Tackle and fishing techniques also tend to be on the simple side when kids are involved. Live bait is great, Demosthenes says, but with kids he usually sticks with frozen, because it’s easy and fast.

“The best thing out in the world for little kids is little chunks of frozen shrimp…”

Using simple techniques will catch a lot of smaller fish, Demosthenes says, but it can also lead to some impressive catches sure to leave a lasting impression on a youngster. His daughter, who fishes regularly with him, is quite a pro. Her first time fishing she caught a 30-inch redfish using live shrimp bait and reeled the fish in herself.

Kids will be kids

The thing to remember, according to both Demosthenes and von Kolnitz, is that most kids don’t care what they catch, as long as they’re catching something.

“Even if the fish are only 2-, 3-, 4-inches long,” Von Kolnitz says, “it’s exciting to the kid to be able to reel it in and be a part of it, instead of sitting there and waiting on a bigger fish to come in that they possibly can’t even reel in – that they’ll just sit back and watch an adult do it anyway.”

And be patient with them kids because they love to reel.

“So you’re constantly casting. You can’t tell them not to do that because you don’t want to discourage them in any way.”

With Emilie, Demosthenes will put out a few baited rods and rod holders, leave them alone and let her play with a rod with a float but no hook.

“I cast it, she reels it in. We make a game of it, see what I can hit or see where I can put it, and that way she has fun with it. Then she kind of gets over it after a little while and will go play in the baitwell.”

And make it fun. Don’t go out with an agenda. Fishing can try an adult’s patience, especially when the bites slow down. For some children, the prospects of waiting and waiting for a bite can become unbearable. Von Kolnitz advises getting kids involved in rigging rods or changing out bait.

“Have the kids help. Do anything you can to get them involved and get their minds off the fact the fish aren’t biting.”

One thing Demosthenes points out is that when the kids are ready to go home, take them home. He learned this from his dad, who introduced him to fishing when he was younger.

“Any time we said we were ready to go, we’d leave, and the result was he so he didn’t burn us out on it.” *