Fishing vacations that also offer family time...

Josh

Josh

Dead in the water
Staff member
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I made this post in @Roadglideguy 's "what would you do with $10k for a fishing trip" and mused that I would probably use the money to take the family on a fancy trip to Hawaii. Fish in the AM and hang out on the beach with the family in the afternoon. No, probably wouldn't get me the most amazing fishing adventure, but would be a pretty fun experience overall as far as "family life".

So, my questions to you all, where would you go if you were looking to find somewhere you could fish part of the day and still have a good time with the family? So, probably nothing too remote/dangerous, no full day charters/floats, accessibility to family-friendly stuff required (parks, pools, beaches, activities, etc), and likely bonus points if it's somewhere warm.

And yes, this means that the fishing side of things is going to suffer a bit. But I suspect many of us would love to be able to Dawn Patrol fish a MT creek for trout in front of our airbnb or walk the beach looking for bluefin trevally near a resort in Hawaii and still get some family time in.

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EDIT: Just to clarify, there's no specific budget requirement here. This is separate from the $10k conversation linked above. A budget campground is just as legitimate of a suggestion as a fancy resort somewhere. Everybody has different budgets.
 
Southwest Montana.
Rock creek Philipsburg in the afternoon. Do that a couple days.
Slide over to the bigHOLE not big horn. camp for the night then go check our Butte and Lewis and Clark caverns. Then head to the Madison and a couple trips to west Yellowstone or even go into the park.
Digging crystals at Crystal Park
Right time of year you can go to Bannack days.
Hike to Coolidge ghost town
Gem Mountain
Ennis Rodeo on the 4th of July

There are all kinds of family things all over the place. You'll have good fishing even if you just fish mornings and evenings leaving all afternoon for family stuff
 
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Our extended family had a family reunion in the Black Hills of South Dakota a while back. There were numerous families with kids from 16 to 2 years old. Some casual fishers as well as hard-core experienced ones. Grandparents in their 70's, parents in their 30s and 40's, everyone was very happy with the activities available. We were able to hit streams everyday, and still take part in all the typical tourist stuff. Beautiful country, lots to see and do, with easily accessible streams and lakes.
Would recommend checking it out.
 
I'll chime in on my own thread and suggest the Whistler, BC area anywhere from Squamish to Pemberton. Lots of stuff to do in the summer. Whistler itself is obviously a resort town with amazing options (especially if you mountain bike). Maybe the fishing isn't mind blowing, but plenty of very pretty creeks and rivers with wild trout and options for some nice Bull Trout if the timing is right (salmon and steel as well). I caught a genuine pig of a bull trout on a tributary of the Squamish river up there.

It's on my short list of "places to take the family" once the pandemic calms enough to make travel less of a hassle.

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If you don’t want to spend a lot of money on airfare, you could do a local staycation.
Rent an airbnb near one of the many of the popular saltwater access spots on Puget Sound. Get up early in the morning, fish for coho then spend the afternoons at the beaches, visiting sites etc. You might be able to sneaking some evening fishing after a nice coho dinner in as well as the days are longer. ;)
This of course depends if you like saltwater fishing.
SF
 
Hey Josh, this thread is right up my alley. I have a 3 (turning 4) year old girl and most, if not all of our travel the past couple years has been to a place where I can fish for even a few hours. Wether its a week long trip or just a weekend backpacking trip, I can usually fish. My move is to usually wake up 30-45 minutes before sunrise so I'm on the water at first light. I usually fish until about 7:30-8am when my wife and kid wake up. Then depending on what we do during the day I'll either fish during naptime or if we go on a hike, etc, I'll skip the day session. My wife is kind enough to take bedtime so I can then go catch last light (I do then take the next 2 weeks worth of bedtimes after).

Lately, we've been doing a full week on the Metolius where a lot of fishing happens. But also a lot of family hiking, swimming, rock throwing and playing in the dirt. This has been a family favorite for all of us. My wife likes me out fishing just as much as I do (especially in the evening because she can sit on the deck in silence, reading and drinking a cocktail while my kid sleeps).

Last year we did Hood Canal by Hama Hama and it was the same drill: First light, naptime, bedtime, and hiking, and playing in the water in between.

We also do a lot of backpacking, hiking and canoe camping where I always happen to end at place that conveniently has some fish ;) : wether a high mountain like or a small stream.

So far, my kid loves watching and helping "strip" fish in which is also fun

With that being said, not all of our trips are based around water, I have to give in sometimes, we are going to Mexico for 3 weeks in may. We'll be on the Oaxacan Coast for one of the weeks. Maybe I'll accidentally stumble into a fishing boat.

This also means, I tend to come home from vacation more tired then when i left...
 
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With 8 kids now mostly grown (final 3 are 13 and 14 year old twins) - this has been my challenge for quite some time. I just did the hawaii thing about 6 months ago. Posted a report on the other forum after. Fished early mornings while the family slept in. Then when at a beach, I'd bring my gear and slip away for a bit as well. Plan to repeat that again next Aug/Sept.
 
mcswny said:
Lately, we've been doing a full week on the Metolius where a lot of fishing happens. But also a lot of family hiking, swimming, rock through and playing in the dirt. This has been a family favorite for all of us.
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This is actually a really good suggestion. I've only been to the Met a couple of times, but every time I think "I should bring the family down here!"

Did you camp or rent a cabin?
 
SW Montana has some great options. plenty of places around that have the same setup but I worked at an outfitter that had great water on a river and a small private lake. You can get up and fish either water in the AM and then can hike or fish or horseback ride or do other ranch stuff. Also fairly close to some towns to check out fun family stuff. And totally agree with @Rob Allen On the timing - 4th of July in that area is damn good

It’s a bit far for you left coasters but the keys are fun too. Can stay in the upper keys and be setup To be close to some diy wade fishing or get a guide. Down in key west it’s a little more of a town atmosphere and further from the ‘good’ wade fishing but getting a guide is doable and then hang with the family and do ‘key weird’ stuff, check out sights and local artists etc
 
for those of you wondering I live in Victoria, on Vancouver Island, some of the best Salmon and Steelhead fishing in the world... I would suggest Americans look at Canada. You save 30 percent right off the bat with your exchange. Have to go some to beat the scenery and the family friendly environment! Just saying....
 
My wife and I went to Denver before our daughter was born a few years ago and I can’t wait to go back. We did a lot of restaurant hoping around the city and plenty of hiking just outside of it. The Saltgrass Steak House was a favorite, but there is a ton of excellent Mexican food. Boulder was a short drive that had some awesome shopping for the wife and a brewery or two for me. Estes Park had tons of trails and seemed to have a lot of things for kids to do. I was even able to toss a few dries at some fish in a few of the streams as well. The last day of the trip, I got to fish a well known river just south of the city. The fishing can be awesome there if you can handle the crowds! Overall, I think it’s an excellent choice for a family that likes the outdoors.
 
Josh said:
This is actually a really good suggestion. I've only been to the Met a couple of times, but every time I think "I should bring the family down here!"

Did you camp or rent a cabin?
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We do both! But the past two 3 years we splurged, and rented a cabin. Mostly because we "saved" so much money with not being able to do any international travel. The first year ruled though, we found a 1 bedroom cabin, maybe a 1/4 mile off the river for $600 a month. That year, the kid slept in the kitchen ;).

The campgrounds are super nice, not sure if they get booked well in advance though. We tend to camp in a bit more of the off season there.

I don't have a ton of knowledge about WA spots. But Wallowa Co in NE Oregon could also be another good option. Staying at Wallowa Lake, you have ample fishing to slink away to for a couple hours at times.

My wife really wants to get up and check out the Skagit Valley, so we might rent something up in that region when my "office" is closed the last week in August.
 
There are a number of cabins and houses for rent on Rock Creek.

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Close to Missoula and Phillipsburg for shopping and eating. Merry-go-round in Missoula for young kids. Lots of places to see wildlife and hike.
Blackfoot, Little Blackfoot and lots of other streams near by for fishing. Georgetown Lake is good for fishing.
@Old Man would also be close by too...

Talk to Deb @ TroutBums regarding bike riding. She would know...
RCF
 
I agree with the HI plan, if you can get up early.
If you go to SW Montana, add Museum of the Rockies to the family list. They have the best dinosaur fossil exhibits and educational content I have seen, hands down.
Don't go to the Met unless you want to teach your kids all the curse words :(
 
Glenwood Springs CO would be a great base of operations. Numerous family attractions, rides, hot springs and pool, bike riding trails, adventure park, slides etc. Located at the confluence of the Roaring Fork and Colorado Rivers, 30 minutes toThe Frying Pan, 15 to the Crystal and an easy drive to numerous blue lines where family hikes and picnics and bikes, less than an hour from Aspen/Snowmass and all the touristy stuff if that is needed for a bit. Great restaurants in the valley, numerous camp grounds etc. Glad to provide more specifics if you want. It was home for 30 years.
 
PhilR said:
I agree with the HI plan, if you can get up early.
If you go to SW Montana, add Museum of the Rockies to the family list. They have the best dinosaur fossil exhibits and educational content I have seen, hands down.
Don't go to the Met unless you want to teach your kids all the curse words :(
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ha!
 
Having two girls age 4 and 6, this is at the top of my radar, family and work come before everything else. If we get a chance to do anything remotely close to fishing its the girls first, last time was at a friends stocked pond a year ago, bait and Barbie rods. The fly rod usually comes along but it stays in the car. We travel to Idaho a few times a year to visit the wifes family but being in poverty (we make 20k a year now due to the pandemic) the lisence fee and gas is usually the vetoing factor so I usually just bring the vise and tie a few flies despite being in the middle of blue ribbon trout fishing mecca. I dunno, I thought this might need some perspective as theres a lot of people out there that don't have 10k at their disposal for leisure. Having that filter, I would go visit the wifes family and buy that 1 week permit. Maybe even buy some wading boots (my plan last time was zip tie some felt to the bottom of regular old boots I have, or sandals, or wet wade.) Not seeking anything with this, just perspective, as it can all turn around this year.
 
FontinalisFin said:
Having two girls age 4 and 6, this is at the top of my radar, family and work come before everything else. If we get a chance to do anything remotely close to fishing its the girls first, last time was at a friends stocked pond a year ago, bait and Barbie rods. The fly rod usually comes along but it stays in the car. We travel to Idaho a few times a year to visit the wifes family but being in poverty (we make 20k a year now due to the pandemic) the lisence fee and gas is usually the vetoing factor so I usually just bring the vise and tie a few flies despite being in the middle of blue ribbon trout fishing mecca. I dunno, I thought this might need some perspective as theres a lot of people out there that don't have 10k at their disposal for leisure. Having that filter, I would go visit the wifes family and buy that 1 week permit. Maybe even buy some wading boots (my plan last time was zip tie some felt to the bottom of regular old boots I have, or sandals, or wet wade.) Not seeking anything with this, just perspective, as it can all turn around this year.
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You can buy a patch of boot felt, cut to size, and then just use shoe goo or similar and convert old hiking boots or tennis shoes to wading shoes/boots.
 
PhilR said:
I agree with the HI plan, if you can get up early.
If you go to SW Montana, add Museum of the Rockies to the family list. They have the best dinosaur fossil exhibits and educational content I have seen, hands down.
Don't go to the Met unless you want to teach your kids all the curse words :(
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Luckily mine already knows....from the last 7 years of Denver Broncos football....😂🤣
 
Josh said:
This is actually a really good suggestion. I've only been to the Met a couple of times, but every time I think "I should bring the family down here!"

Did you camp or rent a cabin?
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one week on a single river? people do that? i mean other than float trips.
 
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