CalTrout was recently part of an epic event celebrating outdoor recreation, the 2018 Pursuit Series at Bear Valley, and it was a blast! The weekend was essentially “summer camp for adults” where participants moved from one fun activity to the next: hiking, mountain biking, climbing, stand-up paddle boarding, camp cooking, fly fishing, and many more, with expert instruction and gear provided. Adventurers from 29 states from as far away as New York and Hawaii, most new to the outdoor scene, gathered at Bear Valley.
CalTrout and Tenkara USA led the fly casting lessons plus fly and knot tying. We made a ton of new friends who are now stoked on fly fishing and have a new understanding of CalTrout’s mission to protect California’s native fish and cold, clean waters.
CalTrout also hosted a brown bag lunch seminar on SOURCE waters, educating the 50 attendees about the vital role alpine meadows serve in California’s water supply. They also learned about native inland trout, the threats they face, and the work CalTrout is doing to protect fish and their waters and how it benefits all Californians. The presentation was led by the Tracey Diaz, Mike Wier, and Megan Nguyen who make up the Communications team.
Huge thanks to our instructors, CalTrout’s Mike Wier, and Mike Willis and TJ Ferreira from Tenkara USA. Also special thanks to George Revel of Lost Coast Outfitters (LCO), San Francisco’s premiere and only fly shop, for providing the knot and fly tying kits. LCO is a great place for anyone in the Bay Area interested in getting fly fishing gear or further fly/knot tying instructions and George has a wealth of knowledge about all things fly fishing related. And thank you to The Outbound Collective for partnering with us as your non-profit sponsor. Congrats on executing such a rad event! Can’t wait for the next one.
Photos by Mike Wier and Megan Nguyen.