We held our first Truchas TU Chapter Women’s Engagement activity on September 12 at Fort Marcy Park here in Santa Fe. We spent the morning on the grass with fly rods, and it was a great way to begin.
One on one, for every caster
Eric Callow and Tanner Hall, highly skilled casting instructors from our Chapter, facilitated us in working to master various casting techniques and provided one on one differentiated guided practice to the 8 of us participants. Eric is our Chapter’s Director of Casting Activities and Tanner chairs our Fly Fishing Committee. With a group our size, each of us got real time with an instructor on her own cast, at her own level.
Participant feedback was extremely positive. We all know what we personally need to work on, and next steps! That is what a good clinic gives you. Not a perfect cast in one morning, but a clear picture of what to practice.
Lunch in the shade
We ended the clinic with a lunch in the shade and female networking/camaraderie. Casting is easier to learn in good company, and so is fishing.
Part of a growing casting program
Our clinic is one piece of a casting program the Chapter has been building. In 2025 the Chapter put out a call for members to join a team of Truchas Casting Instructors. This spring’s casting clinic brought anglers together for a day of roll casts, overhead casting, timing, and line control. And in July the Chapter started a series of open casting practices, so members could keep working on their skills in community with other anglers.
Keep casting with us
If you left with something to work on (and we all did), the Open Casting Sessions are the place to do it. Eric and Tanner lead them every other Saturday at 9 AM at Magers Field in the Fort Marcy Recreational Complex, with the next one on September 19. All skill levels are welcome, and a few loaner setups are available if you need gear.
On Saturday, October 24, the Chapter hosts its Fall Casting Clinic at Magers Field, 8 AM to 1 PM. It is taught by Fly Fishers International Certified Casting Instructors and open to everyone, beginners included. Tickets are $25, and only 40 are available.
The Chapter calendar also lists two New Mexico Lady Anglers gatherings in October: a Fall Fishing meeting with Jesse Lee on October 3 in Santa Fe, and a San Juan fly fishing event on October 10.
Thank you, Eric and Tanner!
– Denise Johnston
