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and its tributaries. "Fly fishing is a challenge," Birdsey says. "You're one -to -one with the fish." In beginning classes, Birdsey's company provides all the equipment. Instructors familiarize students with equipment, show them how to get set up to fish, demonstrate basic knot tying and introduce the biology of fly fishing. They talk about where the fish hide out, which insects there are and why each species is where it is. That's the morning. Next, says Birdsey, come casting lessons. Then the students spend 2 -3 hours on the river. Out of the begin- ners' classes, he says, a handful of people get hooked, continue and invest in their own equipment. The place he's seen the increase, though, is among women in their 40s and 50s. "It used to be a man's sport, but not anymore," Birdsey says. 'A lot of women fished with their husbands. Their hus- bands tied the flies and did everything for them. Not anymore. The women learn and they do it themselves." Felt's seen the same trend, and says that in some says, women are easier to teach because they tend to be better listeners and more receptive to sugges- tions for improvement. Christopherson caught on to the sport when she was in high school in Boulder. A self- described tomboy, she enrolled in a fly tying class and added fly fishing to the sports she enjoyed. Her profession keeps her outdoors most days where she spends "a lot of time waiting for heli- copters." She fishes while she waits, no matter the time of year. "It used to be I'd see three women in a season," Christopherson says. "I fish almost every day. Certainly, you see more women now. More classes are available through DOW, and there's the national program, Women Afield. "And, you see some of the gear, wad- ers and boots are made for women. It's a gradual thing." While retailers target a new sports mar- ket, she says, women are coming around to the idea of the sport's attraction. Another Mineral County rancher and outfitter, Billy Joe Dilley, takes summer- time guests into the high country to fish in remote streams. His dad gave him his first fishing pole when he was 5. On one of the trips Dilley offers, he and his guests climb down into a pristine can- yon on the East Piedra River, the same place his dad taught him to fish and the same place he's fished nearly 50 sum- mers since. "They'll be 30 or 40 fish in the river and they don't run," Dilley relates. "It's like when the mountain men were first here. The fish've been there for years. They don't know what you are. They haven't seen people so they don't have that fear." While Birdsey, Dilley and Felt need to enjoy it, too." Fishing doesn't have to be elabo- rate or epic, though, or even particu- larly expensive. Several years ago, the Colorado Department of Wildlife identi- fied a need in the state —to successfully get youngsters involved in the outdoors one of their parents had to be into, too. Fishing, observes Nickum, often "gets passed from generation to generation" and there are concerns about the sport's decrease in numbers among the young. Creede Guide and Outfitters guide Rory Ramsay, left, and Ramble House owner Shane Birdsey, right, talk about flies with customer Dale Pizel. Birdsey owns both the 50- year -old Ramble House, a something -for- everyone store in Creede, and the outfitting company, which operates on the Rio Grande. are guiding and teaching, they're also paying attention to the state of the river, the fish and their surroundings. "Mining and drought have had a major effect up here," Birdsey explains. "Float trips will be limited this year because we just haven't had the snow. It will have an effect on insect repro- duction, too. "In 2002 when it was so dry, we asked people just to fish in the morning. By afternoon, the water temperature in the river was up to 70 degrees. Even if people were doing catch and release, the stress could cause fish deaths. The water right now in late winter is 32 degrees. That's a big difference. The increase in temperature also means an increase in bacteria in the water." Dilley is adamant about preserving the water and land by teaching Colorado residents and out -of -state visitors alike to have as little impact as possible. "It's here for all of us to enjoy," says Dilley, "but people 50 -75 years from now HEADWATERS I SPRING 20❑6 Birdsey takes students as young as 8 in his fly fishing clinics. Christopherson notes that anglers would "love to have more kids involved," especially considering that many people's fondest memories "are of going fishing when they were kids." Felt says if you want "to get kids inter- ested, you can't get impatient or mad. You have to focus on having fun." Christopherson says she fishes throughout the year. "You can always fish the tailwaters because a dam keeps the water a cer- tain temperature and the fish like that," she says. "They can feed year around and be happy. And, there are some streams that don't freeze up totally, like some parts of the lower Poudre and the lower Big Thompson. I went up in late January to Buttonrock Reservoir on a warm day. The fish are still there. It's a little more challenging, and the weather's colder. Or, you can fly fish for the warm water species, like wipers or bass." ❑ J U 9-