Hi- I’m Rachel, and I’m a Montana girl that loves to fish!
Although
my family did some fishing while I was growing up, it wasn’t until I’d
moved out and gone to college that I really fell in love with it. My
senior year was a hard one-mostly because my marriage was dying- a slow,
pain-filled death. As a result, I was depressed, lonely, and
heartbroken. I decided one day that I wanted to start fishing- I don’t
remember having a reason in particular. So, I got a small, collapsible
rod with a closed-faced reel- I didn’t even know how to work a regular
spinning reel at the time. I had grown up using a fly-and-bobber, as
well as some spinners, so that’s what I started out with. I borrowed a
couple bobbers, then went to a sporting goods store in Utah and bought
some pre-packaged flimsy little flies- the kind that come two to a
plastic container. I was too shy to ask for help at the time, so I
purchased one spinner I thought looked pretty convincing- a tiny size-2
yellow Panther Martin.
I didn’t have much success at first
(shocking, I know). My very first Utah fish was a little three-inch
bass… but hey, I caught something! When my divorce was finalized and I
moved to Montana for my first real teaching job, I met someone almost
immediately who loved to fish as much as I did…only he was a lot better
at it than I was! He introduced me to fly fishing, and I immediately
fell in love with it. Despite spending most of my time untangling line,
tying knots, or getting my flies out of the grass, bushes, and the back
of my head, I loved it. I learned most of what I know today from him-
fly fishing, paddle fishing, ice fishing, how to read water, how to
float a river, how to pick out bigger lures and better flies!
I'm
definitely not the best fisherperson I know, but I do have the passion
and the desire. I think I love fishing so much because it’s mine- I
chose it. I found it at a time when I really needed something in my
life, and it’s been a part of me ever since. Fishing is an art that I
never get tired of. The cast, the mend, the float down the river…the
watching, the waiting, and the calming yet intense focus that envelops
your entire mind. It’s a place where I can go to be me. I develop my
skills, try new techniques, take pictures and feel the water. I fish
until my arms are exhausted, I can’t feel my fingers, or there’s not
enough light left to retie my knots! Fishing is healing- from stress,
from hard times, and from everyday life. It is this joyful, beautiful
thing that is both challenging and rewarding. It’s about passion and
dedication- skill and beauty.
Fishing is definitely a part of who I am, and…I love it!
