Living on River Time

Rookie No More: The Fly Fishing Novice Gets Guidance from a Pro

By: Cecilia “Pudge” Kleinkauf

In complete transparency, I did not enjoy this book the first time I read it. I don’t see this as a bad thing because it forced me to think of where I am coming from as a reader and angler. In doing so, I actually learned a lot.

Cecilia’s book “Rookie No More” is a comprehensive overview of everything the reader needs to know in order to grow and be successful at the sport of fly fishing. Her extensive and lifetime’s worth of knowledge is outlined and evident in each of the chapters. The book itself is organized in a Question-and-Answer format with helpful visuals, examples, and narratives to support the instruction and information the she is conveying. This wealth of information and variety in ways of presenting the knowledge (i.e. images and stories), allows for an easy-to-understand instructional manual. The organization of the book itself also allows the reader to skim-read the portions they feel they need to address first, rather than reading from cover to cover. The author herself says her purpose for this book is to be a handbook of sorts for the reader to keep with them on their fishing expeditions. It’s these aspects coupled with the helpful tips and perspectives that make Cecilia’s book shine. The more contentious aspects of the book I found to be rooted in my own difference of opinion, and cultural and life experiences.

Wealth of Knowledge

Cecilia (Pudge) Kleinkauf made her career as a life-long fly fisher and woman of the water. She was a retired University professor and a lawyer, and created a thriving community that still exists today in Women’s Flyfishing®. She was an established and prolific guide throughout Alaska and Central/South America. She is the author of several books on fly fishing and fish species that are still relevant today to both new and seasoned anglers. Her legacy thrives in the fact that she has left behind such a wealth of knowledge and inspiration for people who have taken her classes, were guided by her, and benefited from her being so willing to share her knowledge and experience.

Her book “Rookie No More” is the brief snapshot of those experiences and knowledge she amassed as a guide, angler, and lifetime woman on the water. This knowledge alone makes her book invaluable. It also accomplishes her goal for the book as being a comprehensive pocket guide.

Helpful Tips and Perspectives

Throughout the chapters Cecilia not only explains the basics of putting together a fly rod set up, casting, choosing flies, and strategy for reading water. She also explains her experience of the why behind the method. This is important because it offers her perspective as a woman in a mostly male-dominated space. It’s also important because it shows how she has evolved with her experience as a guide. A good example of this is when she says:

“Look for rods and reels that have lifetime warranties and will be repaired or replaced by the manufacture if they break. If you buy cheap equipment and break it, you’ll just have to go out and buy more.” (p.32)

Coming from someone who uses their gear on a weekly if not daily basis, this is very sound advice and something everyone entering the sport should to consider.

“The three most important skills for managing a long, dry fly leader include: 1. Developing a good casting rhythm; 2. Keeping your wrist straight to make sure the tip of your rod and your thumb stay pointed to the sky; and 3. Ensuring that you are stopping the rod in the correct place in both the front and the back cast.” (pg 68)

She also goes deeper into the aspects of casting and drifting techniques and offers the reader ways to troubleshoot the issues they could potentially be having with their presentation. These techniques include an overview of the basic casts such as the overhead, roll, and side-arm. Then, she expands on other casts that are useful to learn like the slack line, reach, and steeple. As an beginner/intermediate fly angler, I appreciated the detailed description of each of the casting methods and different metaphors used to help beginners learn the technique.

“Just as the hammer must stay in contact with the nail for a few seconds, the stop of the rod on either end must be followed by a brief ‘wait’ to give the rod tip time to transfer all the energy into the fly line and be ready to go in the opposite direction.” (pg 19)

This is another aspect that shines through from her experience as a guide and educator. The metaphors and connections to other popular images helps the reader visualize the action. Her goal is to help her readers be successful and give them the tools to correct and remedy the challenges they are going through.

“Causes of splats or placement of all of the fly line and leader on the water result from: 1. Failure to stop the rod at the correct place; 2. Failure to wait a few seconds for the leader to unfurl; 3. Failure to keep the thumb in a more upright position so the wrist does not bend; or 4. Failure to keep your arm from following through too soon after the stop.” (pg 64)

Furthermore, she helps with little things like organizing fly boxes, kids and fly fishing, and even selecting a fly fishing lodge. All these aspects make “Rookie No More” exactly what she envisioned: a wealth of knowledge in the angler’s pocket as they set out on their own adventures.

The Stories We Tell

Instructional guides are a tricky type of writing style because they need a balance of researched knowledge and opinion. The reader is coming to the instructional guide for straightforward advice on how to complete a task. At the same time, the writer is giving these instructions while also managing their own inherent bias of how best to complete that task. Cecilia’s book Rookie No More certainly walks the balancing tightrope of providing that experienced and researched knowledge of fly fishing with her own opinion. The places I was left wanting more from her book were in the spaces where we share a healthy difference of opinion. These included her comments on the differences between men and women’s wading capabilities and menstruation while being in the outdoors.

“I also remind women that they often can’t wade where their husband or boyfriend can because men and women have a different center of gravity.” (p108)

Yes. This is a physiological difference between men and women. According to an article published in the National Library of Medicine “Biological Sex-Related Differences in Whole-Body Coordination During Standing Turns in Healthy Young Adults,” “females generally have a lower center of gravity and wider pelvis compared to males” furthermore they state that “this anatomical difference can affect the distribution of body mass and alter the biomechanics of postural control.” Yes, fundamentally, men and women’s bodies are built differently, for different evolutionary reasons. However, those differences alone have no bearing on whether or not a women can safely wet wade in the same places as a man. Cecilia goes on to say that:

“I always caution my clients to follow their instincts about the water we are fishing and not to chance wading it if they aren’t comfortable doing so, even if they have a wading staff.” (pg108)

This is absolutely correct in making the reader fall back on their own initial instincts when partaking in anything with a certain level of risk. The most important thing here is education and instinctually listening to and knowing your own abilities, not the evolutionary difference between men and women’s bodies. Wading in a river carries an inherent level of risk. As anglers its our responsibility to educate ourselves on how to be safe and fairly assess our own capabilities in any given situation on the water.

“Women also have the issue of mensuration to deal with, and often are concerned about attracting wild animals during their monthly flow. Wearing tampons instead of pads can alleviate much of that worry.” (pg 118)

No. The concept of menstruation attracting animals is a myth that’s existed in the outdoor community for long enough. This is something women still ask about in online forums, personal spaces, and public classes related to any activity in the outdoors. As a reader, and a female, I wanted Cecilia to assure me that I should just live my life. This is where I will admit my own bias has me disappointed that she side-stepped the issue instead of discrediting the myth altogether.

In Review

As a culture we are coming to a reckoning with the myths that have kept women, minorities, and those who have been othered from the outdoor space. This reckoning asks us as people who participate and value the outdoors to be more conscious of the language we use when teaching, sharing, and mentoring others in these spaces. I see this as a good thing because it fosters growth, innovation, and new perspectives. Most importantly it fosters the concept of lifelong learning. Inclusivity is not a destination, it’s a lifestyle and language shift that is consciously and consistently in a growing phase. It’s a concept that is very rooted in the same things as fly fishing. Every space/audience and every river/ecosystem are different and unique. They are all in a constant state of change, evolution, and intersection. Knowing this and approaching the sport of fly fishing from that space of learning and evolution is the most valuable thing I have observed so far in my 8 + years with the community. “Rookie No More” by Cecilia Kleinkauf is an excellent starting point and on-the-river handbook for readers who want the basics of fly fishing and the language to get them started. But I would like to challenge the reader to consider the concept of becoming an “expert” as not a destination. It’s an ongoing and ever-evolving journey of “rookie” learning opportunities and adventures that can make up the beautiful process of life that fly fishing embodies.