Beginners Luck

For a group of women who have never fly fished before, there were certainly a lot of fish landed...and not just any fish....BIG FISH !

Last weekend was the 2019 Colorado kickoff retreat for

Casting for Recovery

that sponsored 14 women enduring breast cancer treatment

I've been told by many male fishing guides, that women make great fly fishermen...we don't have huge ego's when attempting a new sport or activity, we are open to suggestion and guidance, we are great at multitasking, we are competitive enough to seek success and we quick learners.

Call it beginners luck, if you will, but I most certainly witnessed a lot of seasoned casting skills and observed huge improvements in hook setting abilities as the day passed.

"Hoops & hollers" were heard all day long over the rush of the water,

along with high 5's, fist bumps and hugs as each fish was landed

and then released back into the water

To me, fly fishing is like Christmas morning...That same sense of giddy excitement about gifts hidden behind wrapping paper, under the tree surrounds me when I have a fish on the end of my line. It resists me by fighting and tugging on the rod as I attempt to pull the fish away from it's protective cover...until it finally breaks through the river surface and the gift is revealed.

It's impossible not to smile when you've caught a fish, and the smiles can be just as big, even when

the catch slips through your fingertips !

The CFR Board, the local volunteers, retreat organizers, North Fork Ranch employees and expert guides all work tirelessly to help a group of women forget about their cancer for just 1 weekend.

I can't begin to understand what it's like to deal with a cancer diagnosis, but I could totally relate to each participant and the thrill that they experienced as each fish was landed !