My father was an avid fisherman. He mostly fished with lures and bait in the local rivers and lakes. But once a year we would go to the mountains and stay with my cousins and he would fly fish. We had very little money so we usually stayed with family but I remember one summer we stayed in a cabin. It was the coolest vacation ever!
My dad tied his own flies. He showed me how and I was fascinated. I would sit along the shallows and watch him cast over and over, occasionally landing a small brown or brookie….maybe a rainbow. I was never allowed to fly fish. The equipment came at a dear price and I couldn’t swim. It wasn’t even a consideration.
When I joined the Sisters on the Fly, I bought fly fishing equipment. I went to a large Sisters gathering and signed up with a guide for a group lesson. I don’t know if it was the guide, or the number in the group, or the equipment, but…I hated it. Hated it!!! I was SO disappointed. I almost got rid of my gear when I downsized, but I decided to hang onto it and try again.
I met a really neat lady yesterday at the Fly Fishing Show. Paula Fothergill was married to the late Chuck Fothergill, the fly fishing guru from Aspen. She now works for Casting for Recovery, an organization that teaches women with breast cancer and breast cancer survivors how to fly fish. It is the main charity Sisters on the Fly members contribute to. In talking with Paula, we discovered we lived in the same small town in Colorado. She asked if I fly fish and I related my experience. She said, “Come with me!” and she took me to meet the general manager of Telluride Outside…John Duncan. I quickly discovered how well respected Chuck Fothergill was, as Paula handed me over to John’s capable tutelage. He selected an 8.5′ 5 pound Scott rod, a medium weight that is well balanced and excellent for the novice fly fisher.
There is a pond set up inside at the show to practice casting. We took our turn and in 5 minutes, I was hooked, so to speak. I was so excited! All it took was a knowledgeable, patient instructor and good gear to make all the difference in the world. Now I can’t wait to get out on the river and catch my first trout on a fly!
❤️
Photo Credit: Sisters on the Fly
“Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea.”
Ezekiel 47:9-10 NIV