It’s our 15^th year of Project Green Teen (PGT) and, as usual, we need plenty of help with guiding the kids this year. For those of you who have helped out in previous years, you know that the guides are a huge part of PGT’s success. Leading up to the week in Avalanche, the students have been taught fly tying and casting. The guides are critical in order for the students to connect all the fly fishing “dots.”

For those of you who haven’t guided for PGT before, you should give it a try, even if you can only do it for one day. Don’t worry about not catching fish. It happens to all of us (or at least some of us). Also, if you are hesitant to guide because you aren’t familiar with the streams in the area, don’t worry. There will be plenty of people to give you ideas on where to fish.

Here’s what you need to know about PGT:

• Fishing Days– The students will be fishing from Sunday, May 12 through Thursday, May 17.  We need guides for each of these days.  Generally, fishing starts around 3:30 p.m. and ends around 7:00 p.m.  That leaves you much of the day to fish on your own before guiding the students.
• Location– The PGT outing is held at the West Fork Sportsmans Club in Avalanche.  The students stay in the clubhouse. You are free to camp there (for a fee) or get a room at a Viroqua-area motel.
• Food, Drinks, Etc.– At the end of each guiding day, you are treated to a dinner prepared by the students and Shabazz H.S. staff.  It’s a great opportunity to hang out with the students and your fellow guides.  After  dinner,  it’s been the custom to adjourn to the adult campfire for some tall tales and adult beverages.  You are on your own for breakfast and lunch.
• Background Checks— This is important! Per state law, all of the guides will need to go through a background check.  If you helped with fly tying or fly casting, you have hopefully already heard about the need to complete the form for the Avalanche trip. If you completed it already, you don’t need to again.

In the past, guides were required to fill out a one page form that allowed the school to perform a background check.  This year, the School District has instituted an onlinebackground check.  Here is a link to the Volunteer Form: https://appgarden6.app-garden.com/names.nsf?Login.  Also, here is a link to the Instructions: https://docs.google.com/a/madison.k12.wi.us/document/d/107_28IGPXISwK2YoC-hdvDwxmhe6VlJhM-gREgvfQrM/edit?usp=drive_web.  Note: This needs to be completed prior to the Avalanche trip.

Please contact Dave Fowler ASAP if you are interested in guiding this year and which days you can guide. Also, if you know someone who might want to guide, feel free to forward this to them. You can reach Dave at (608) 513-0681 or dfowler82@gmail.com.