My Little Fishing Story

Every year my father, Pappy, would take a fly fishing trip to Montana.  He would come back with stories from Paradise Valley and the huge trout he tempted with homemade flies.  His buddy Jim was one of the first twenty-five guides in the state and he invented most of the slang and one liners we throw at each other today.  You miss a fish and its wise cracks from the back, “you got that outta there just in time!”  

Occasionally the annual trip would relocate to east Tennessee and I finally got an invite.  Though I had been exposed to fly fishing as a kid, the extent of my knowledge was how to step on a tip section and snap it in half.  In a giant field next to the hotel, Pappy tried to educate me on rigging up a rod and not casting like a knucklehead.  “East Tennessee, Take a look around.”  This phrase still has an impact on me.  How often are we stuck and we aren’t able to look around beautiful East Tennessee.  My guide “Stunk” shared with me his passion over the next couple of days and I became obsessed.  From the front of the boat, I glanced back to see Pappy beaming.  That’s my guy.  

Tennessee planted the seed but the western river Cutthroats and the native Brook trout of Virginia are what watered the obsession.  It starts with the all consuming cast and grows into spending way too much money on tying materials.  I was so lucky to have mentors and influences in fly fishing who continue to inspire and teach me.  I’m looking at you “Flappy”!  I want more women to be able to have the opportunity that I have had and I want to build a community of friendly, energetic, female fly fishers who can eventually give me a cool nickname.  

It’s about the beautiful places where fish live.  It’s about trying a new fly on a new piece of water.  It’s about understanding life and how it works.  And for me, it’s about sharing the passion.  Fly fishing is a lifelong journey of fish, bugs, gear, and conservation.  I may not teach you to rip a lip but I will show you a new way to explore the beautiful world around you.  Let’s get your first fish on the fly!