outdoors tagged posts

We hope you had an extraordinary Thanksgiving filled with family, friends, joy and turkey!! We are beyond thankful for your continued support and this growing community. Join us today in opting outside instead of standing in line at a store on Black Friday!! Good luck and remember camo is the new black!

The Hubs and I are headed out to Shenandoah this weekend to camp and *cross your fingers* dapple in a little fly fishing.  We’ve had heavy rains the past few weeks in and around DC, which has spoiled plans to get out several weekends.  With heavy rain, the water gets too high and muddy to fish but we’re hoping with this dry week that the fishing has been improved and we’ll finally get our feet in some cool water. It’s been too long since our Montana trip and I’m itching to land a fish!  Practice makes perfect right?! And if anything is right, it’s that we need more practice. Here’s a guide to North America’s fish to prepare us for what we *will* be pulling out of the water…

Wish you had this guide to help I.D. your fish?  You’re in luck, it’s a crafty poster!  Check it out here. 

Today Whitney of Camo is the New Balck is sitting down with Heather Hodson, founder of Spokane Women on the Fly to learn more about her nonprofit and how it took flight. We’re excited to host this smart and savvy angler and hope you enjoy the interview! 

Camo is the New Black: How did Spokane Women on the Fly start?

Heather Hodson: Spokane Women on the Fly (SWOTF) was founded in March 2014.  I’ve always loved to fish with the guys but noticed that there were not a lot of women on the water.  I’ve always been an organizer/planner of events and saw a need to start a group.  SWOTF is a way to give women of the Inland Northwest, whether new or experienced, an opportunity to connect with other women fly fishers...

Wildfire season has been particularly bad this year in the west.  The smoke is heavy and the ground is dry.  But home in Montana for 10 days we found peace on the river. 

We drove over to Bozeman from Missoula to spend time with my sister, celebrate her new baby and take time to get outside.

After picking up some purple haze flies and rigging up the new rod, we headed to the Gallatin.  As we carefully selected which holes to fish, the smoke remained thick and the mountains looked like distant ghosts.  But the water was cool on our feet, the temperature warm and the breeze on the river was pure the further we waded.  We only had a few nibbles in the hours we were out on the water but our casts got stronger and further as the day passed.

There’s nothing like being outside standing side-by-s...

Three weeks away has been just what the doctor ordered. Three states and three rivers later, I have fished two rivers in Montana, floated another and camped in Virginia’s Shenandoah.  I have helped welcome a new member to our family, spent time with my 95 year old Grandma and inhaled wildfire smoke thick enough it feels like I smoked 10 cigars.  I’ve slip and slid down an adult slip-n-slide, mended a sick dog, ate the BEST elk tacos, celebrated my 30 years on this planet and two years of marriage!  Through all this, I’m reminded nothing does the body and mind better than being outdoors and spending time with good friends and family.  It’s the glue that makes life stick together and worth every minute!  

People are why this blog started...