Women In Fly Fishing

After receiving my latest issue of Field and Stream with a great article on Joan Wulff, it got me thinking about gender in fishing. In my life there aren't many ladies throwing the line. Granted this is a picture of my girlfriend in Alaska reefing on a huge salmon, but it's not often that she's begging me to flog the water for eight hours straight.

What about you? Ladies are you the sole angler in your circle of friends, did your mom teach you how to fish? If you don't fish on a regular basis - why not?

Guys, how many of you have female friends that fish with you on a consistent basis? Any of you have a friend, spouse, girlfriend that fishes more than you?

What gives?

TR

Comments

[joey]

hey, i just found this new blog:

http://flyfishchick.com/

[fly fish chick]

you are one lucky guy...looks like your girlfriend is a beauty & a badass!

the other day my 8-year daughter said, "Mommy why don't more girls like to fly fish? I mean, really! What's not to LOVE?"

[Jon Malovich]

I have been lucky on occasion to have my wife wetting a fly with me but she has yet to go it alone, as for my 3 daughters they have fallen in love with the Sport at the early ages of 3,6,8. And now want to catch trout and pan fish on the 2&3 wt's any chance they can, so a recommendation for any of you fathers out there take your daughters out and get them hooked it has made for some of my fondest fly fishing memories so far.

And I case you are wondering there future boy friends will have to be able to pass the Federation of Fly Fishers Master certification before they can date my girls!

JMAL.

[tim romano]

fly fish chick,

thanks. Ellie (my girlfriend) is a beauty. Badass, well... I'm sure she'd like to think so.

[tim romano]

JMAL,

Fantastic! I love it. An FFF certificate to get in the door. That's great that your three daughters are into it at such a young age. Keep it up.

Tim

[John]

I am lucky and have a wife that goes fly fishing with me most every time. She has more patience than I do and certainly catches as many fish. We honeymooned in New Zealand and brought our rods too. What a gal!

[joey]

careful advertising your daughters, i'm sure there will be plenty of perverted old men with fff certificates ready to pounce. i know a few.

[Jon Malovich]

Those Old Men still gotta get through me and as a former Defensive End and Gun Owner I would actually enjoy the sport that it would create! CLICK, CLICK BOOM!

JMAL

[joey]

haha!! awesome...

[dmj]

In response to your question, I have a wife, daughter, and grandaughter who fly fish. Last summer they spent many more days on Montana rivers (not by my choice) and caught more and much larger trout than I. I predict the same will happen this year, as my daughter only becomes more proficient handling her drift boat and they all can find trout. Each has her own particular passion for fly fishing, remarkable skills, and intuition. It is an honor to fish with them and my greatest joy.

[Peeet]

That isn't the Dream Stream she's fishing Tim is it?

[FLYFISHERGIRL]

Entering into a mostly male dominated sport can be very intimidating. In my experience generally one of two things happen, you either don't get taken seriously (until you prove yourself), or you get hit on. Both of these situations are annoying and down right rude to a female angler on any level, from beginner to experienced.

Personally, I know more women would like to learn (more) about fly fishing, or angling on a whole, but many feel intimidated when learning from a man, spouse or not. Even going into a sport fishing store as a new female angler can be daunting. When I first moved to Vancouver, I didn't get taken seriously in the local fly shops, and in some cases I got treated like s**t.

I have asked quite a few male anglers why they don't fish with their wives/spouses very much, and the most common answer is "I don't have the patience". When someone is learning a sport that is new to them, they need to be surrounded by like minds in order to be comfortable. Jimmy LeMert, who I have never met, owns Patrick's Fly Shop in Seattle. From what I know, the ladies absolutely love him. Quite a few of my female clients and friends from Washington continually go to him for casting lessons and advice. Obviously, he makes them feel comfortable.

I fish as much as I can, and sadly, almost every one one of my dedicated fishing buddies are guys. I do have a few girlfriends that enjoy the sport, but they are not as dedicated as me, therefore they do not have much of the gear. In order to support and encourage women anglers of all levels, I started www.flyfishergirl.com in order to provide an avenue for female anglers who would like to share their experiences and love of the sport in a non-intimidating environment.

[oatka]

My wife fishes with me too. Of course having 4 kids under 11 years old makes it hard for both of us to get out alone. We fished on our honeymoon too!