Ever want to properly bait a hook? Dock a boat? Cast a net? Women aspiring to become expert anglers can learn fishing basics with Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! seminars, recognized as “The No Yelling School of Fishing.”
Asking my father or former husband to teach me something they were experts in would be, let’s say, “intense.” Although I had some fishing under my belt during my days living in Everglades National Park, I attended a Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! seminar in the Florida Keys a few years ago and picked up useful tips and tricks I didn’t know I needed out on the water. Best of all, the school lived up to the promise of learning with patience and without intimidation and yelling from men.
Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!: The Basics
Weekend seminars offer educational sessions and hands-on activities. The next day is an opportunity to put skills to work out on the water with area saltwater fishing guides. Mini-seminars are an afternoon of fishing basics with an opportunity to fish the next day.
Many women can relate to the experience of fishing with their father, husband, boyfriend, or other male companion, and being yelled at for an innocent misstep. Perhaps these women didn’t set the hook properly or threw the anchor off the boat without the line tied to the boat.
Betty Bauman, director of Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! (LLGF), founded the organization in 1997 to offer women the opportunity to learn how to fish without the yelling or intimidation of men. In addition to the saltwater fishing seminars, there is an LLGF chapter in Fort Lauderdale which offers women the opportunity to enhance their fishing skills, network with other women anglers, and fish.
Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!: What to Expect
Fishing basics are taught by female and male fishing captains. Skills taught include why and how to vent a fish, chumming, what drag is and when to use it, how to hold a rod with a spinning reel, and the difference between inshore and deep sea fishing. The intimate, friendly format allows participants to ask any question and no question is too small or dumb.
The hands-on portion of the program includes different skill stations allow women anglers to practice various fishing techniques. Outside, participants learn and practice boat handling, fly casting, trailering techniques, and net casting. Inside, ladies learn more skills like how to rig ballyhoo (which is a bait fish and a very messy task), knot tying, and how to de-hook a fish.
Angling skills are put to work on Sunday when Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! participants join fishing guides for a half-day of angling. Filleting skills are taught once the catch is returned to shore, if the women choose to keep their fish. The Sunday fishing fee is in addition to the seminar fee.
Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!: Who Should Attend?
Any woman interested in saltwater fishing will appreciate and benefit from attending the seminar and it’s open to non-Florida residents, too. Attendees range from novice anglers through experienced fisherwomen. Women can attend solo or with friends or family members. Male guests are welcome to attend evening events.
Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!: Schedule
The educational weekend makes an ideal girlfriend getaway. Visit the website for Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! for registration information.
The only yelling heard during a Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! seminar is out on the water from excitement of landing a fish. Who’s in?
