Michigan Trout Unlimited Youth Camp

The M-N Heritage Chapter is proud to actively support this excellent opportunity to teach youth not only how to fish but how to protect the water where fish live. This year our chapter helped sponsor advanced camper Kassidy Cavendish. Harrison Salawitz, a camper who has worked his way from a basic camper into the role of Jr. Counselor, also represented meeting-Neumann.

Youth interested in conservation and fishing gather each year in Roscommon for four days of fishing and learning how to protect the cold waters where those fish live. The intensive work includes everything from how humans impact waterways to reducing the spread of invasive species to not fishing for trout when water temps rise.

The area does a great job hosting the kids; local businesses and anglers step in to give a great representation of our sport. Steve Sendeck of Northpoint Fisheries Management invites the campers to work with his crew on a stream improvement project. The kids tour the Lovells Trout Museum, visit all the area fly shops, and they go canoeing; area anglers take the campers on a float in a traditional Au Sable River boat.

And the kids fish! Casting instruction starts on the lawn and continues through the week in rivers and lakes. Each camper learns to tie flies and then takes those flies out to catch fish. Skills such as getting your fly out of a tree are taught firsthand.

Hosted by the Kalamazoo Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited, the camp relies on the support of many businesses and conservation organizations. To learn more about the camp, go to https://michigantucamp.org/