I’m Kylie from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and I am a fly girl. Fly as in fly-fishing, but also as in pretty cool. I decided to start a blog to share my love of nature and my passion for fishing. For me, my goal in writing this blog is to gain a readership of people who love the outdoors, all fishermen and women, and people who want to read my crazy stories. I also want to provide a voice for women in this male dominated industry. I have a lot of tips and tricks that will really help women get a jump start on their outdoors-womanship. I have experienced first hand the struggles, awesome perks, and unique experiences that come with being a woman in a male dominated outdoors industry. I have faith that this blog will provide everyone, men and women, with a greater love, a growing curiosity, and a silly grin anytime they think about the outdoors.
Kylie, in a signature Red Sox fishing cap and green pull over. (They are lucky.)Fly fishing is what most of my blog posts will be about, but I figure I should start from the beginning of my fishing career. In the beginning there was no fly rod and reel, but rather a long drive, a lake, and shiny lures. As a desert rat from New Mexico, you would never think that I would find enough water, enough fish, or enough time to find good fishing, but the secrets of this state are sure to surprise. My family and I live in Albuquerque, and 100% off the time fly fishing requires a drive. Surprisingly, New Mexico is not where I got my start fishing. It required a much much longer drive. My family of five drove from Albuquerque to Minnesota to escape the desert and enjoy a cabin by the lake.
Kissing a tiny, toothy, northern pike.It was summer of 2007, and my Dad decided it would be a fun idea to take the whole family, five of us, on a guided fishing trip to a lake in Minnesota. This was not our first fishing experience, but it was our first trip away from a well-stocked kiddie pond. My Dad and I are the only two people in our family who absolutely adore the outdoors, but he never lets any of us run away from adventures. It was a cloudy day (perfect for fishing), and we were all loaded onto a boat with an amazing guide. While on the boat we caught, large mouth bass, small mouth bass, crappie, and northern pike. This may not seem like a super impressive fishing story, and by all means it was not the biggest fish ever, or the coolest fishing ever, but it was the first fishing trip we took as a family. We ALL had an amazing time, it was so fantastic! After this trip I was definitely hooked (pun-intended).
Largemouth BassThis picture to the right shows the exact moment when I discovered that fishing would forever be my passion. I hooked into a largemouth, once it was out of the water the guide taught me how to remove the hook and hold the fish with my thumb in its mouth. Feeling that fish, holding it, and releasing it was the moment that I fell in love with the sport of fishing.
Tiny Sunfish picture from the web http://web1.cnre.vt.edu/efish/families/centrarchidae.htmlNot 48 hours later comes my favorite fishing story of all time. We were standing on the dock of the lake and my Dad and I wanted to try to catch a few more pike off the dock. I was not catching anything, but tiny little sunfish. They were so voracious that they would swallow the hook, which was way too big for them to survive. After I pulled the hook, I would throw the bleeding ones back into the water. Every time that I threw one in, a giant, eel-like, black fish, around 3 feet long, would gobble them up. The next sunfish I hooked into swallowed the hook, and my dad said “throw it all in, just to see if he bites.” Oh boy, he certainly bit it! Sitting at the top of the water was the little sunfish and all of a sudden I see a giant mouth grab the whole thing. My rod tip bent nearly in half, and I yelled for my dad. It was immensely heavy! I couldn’t believe it. I reeled in with all my might and I could see the long, sleek, slimy, body. It saw me too. Just then, it darted off, pulling line, and almost pulling me along with it. It did the one thing a fisherman dreads, it pulled the line (and my rod tip) under the dock. I reeled and reeled trying to get him out from under the dock, but right then the hook shot out of its mouth. The hook was now as straight as an arrow. My dad and I burst into tears of laughter and it will forever be one of our favorite fishing stories to tell, and believe me, we have quite a few.
I’ll try to keep this blog updated with new fun stories, tips, and tricks. Friends and family please feel free to share it and tell people about it. I really would love for this blog to take off. There is not enough information out there for fisherwomen!
This is it, I have started a blog. I suppose this is my first post. Let me tell you a little nugget about myself.
I’m a desert girl, born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I travel for fun, but mostly to fly fish. I study English Literature and Religious Studies at the University of New Mexico. To provide for all my fly fishing expenses I work at the best local business out there, Betty’s Bath and Day Spa in Albuquerque. I’m engaged to my high school sweet heart Diego, and I have two furry dog babies that I love with all my heart.
Fly Fishing Fly Girl 