133. Building Your Fly Fishing Community

In this episode, we sit down with Jamie Hanna, Amy Snitko, Chaseline Waldrup, and Bella Orr from Knox Girls Who Fly Fish to talk about what it takes to build a fly fishing community from the ground up. In less than a year, the group has grown from a handful of women fishing together to a thriving community with regular meetups, fishing days, an active social media presence, and a growing email list. We talk about the practical things that have helped them grow, including social media, word of mouth, local fly shop support, and creating events where people feel comfortable showing up even if they've never picked up a fly rod. We also get into fishing techniques, favorite waters, dream trips, local food stops, and a few painful stories about the fish that got away. **Key Highlights:** - Social media and word of mouth helped Knox Girls Who Fly Fish grow quickly while keeping the community personal and welcoming. - Local fly shops have played a big part in connecting women with the group, hosting events, providing speakers, and helping spread the word. - Meetups aren't always about fishing. Fly box nights, brewery gatherings, speakers, food, and casual conversations give new anglers an easier way to get involved. - Creating a comfortable place to ask questions helps remove some of the intimidation that can come with learning fly fishing. - Dry-dropper rigs are a group favorite, with plenty of discussion about changing fly size, tippet length, leader setup, and experimenting until you find what works. - Bow-and-arrow casting, Euro nymphing, and Tenkara all make an appearance as the group shares some of the techniques they enjoy using on East Tennessee waters. - The conversation travels from small plunge pools in the Smokies to tailwaters like the Clinch and Hiwassee, along with dream fishing destinations including New Zealand, Patagonia, Belize, Italy, and Alaska. - We finish with local places to eat after a day on the water and stories about big trout that came painfully close to the net. - Whether you're thinking about starting a fly fishing club, trying to breathe some new life into an existing group, or simply looking for more people to fish with, there are plenty of ideas here worth borrowing. - Share this episode with your fishing partners and anyone interested in building a stronger fly fishing community. Be sure to follow Southeastern Fly, sign up for the newsletter, and go fish! **Resources:** - Visit southeasternfly.com - Sign up for our newsletter Produced by NOVA