Angler of the Month

Ladies and gentlemen, she's back! Rogue Angels blog is up and running again (YAY!!), at a new address: www.rogueangels.net

So I decided that every month I'm going to feature an angler who inspires me. Although I'm not going to limit it to women only, I'm going to try to focus on the female side of things.

For my first feature, there is no one more worthy than the original Rogue Angel herself, the famous (or infamous) Kalamity K8. I've already mentioned her in previous posts, and I'm sure most of you are familiar with her, but how can you not love K8?

K8 should be an inspiration to anyone, regardless of gender, ability, experience or age. If you've read her blog, you'll know that K8 truly wants everyone to experience fishing the way it should be - with awe, joy, passion and love. Fishing with K8 makes you appreciate all the little details, including those hard lessons we all have to learn. No matter what, I've never seen K8 beat down, whether she fell in the river five times, didn't catch any fish, got her truck stuck in the mud or had to push her drift boat up a side channel. She takes those bad times and moves on to the good. K8 is constantly pushing herself to learn more and to move beyond boundaries. K8's like having a happy little angel sitting on your shoulder, encouraging you to be the best you can be.
K8 took a leap of faith last spring, and wound up spending the summer on the incredible waters of Bristol Bay in Alaska, guiding for giant rainbows and chasing bears. I imagine working 14+ hours a day, seven days a week, for months at a time would kill most of us but every time I talked to K8 throughout the season she sounded... well, tired, of course, but like she had come home. That she was in the place she was meant to be. How many of us can say we feel like that on a regular basis? Usually we're all bitching about not spending enough time doing what we love to do.
Since the day I met her, K8 has always been trying to find ways to encourage more women into the world of fishing. Whether friend, client or total stranger, K8 is always there to share her love of the outdoors. I think a lot of women are intimidated by a sport that has traditionally been dominated by men, and have trouble finding the resources to feel capable of going out on their own. Knowing K8 makes me believe that there is no reason why I can't pave my own path in the fishing world. My gender doesn't diminish my ability or my passion, nor should it compromise my confidence. Whenever I'm in danger of forgetting that, I've got have the newest member of the Loop Army on my side, reminding me what fishing is all about - fun.