Out & about: Fly fishing school

OUTCATCH – For 35 years, the Spokane Fly Fishers have unselfishly changed the lives of novice anglers who enroll in the eight-week Beginning Fly Fishing School. The instruction goes way beyond casting and catching.

The 2017 school begins Feb. 16 with seven weekday evening classroom sessions through March at the Inland Northwest Wildlife Council building, 6116 N. Market.

Four separate casting clinics are scheduled including an on-the-water session and graduation barbecue at Medical Lake.

Topics covered in the classroom sessions include equipment, knot ting, entomology, water safety, fishing moving water, fishing still water, identifying fish and fly fishing “past and future.”

Students traditionally have been mostly interested in fly fishing for trout, club members say, but as interest has grown in fly fishing for bass, the club has added a section looking specifically at warmwater fly fishing.

Instructors have years of experience fishing local waters and beyond, and casting instructor Len Zickler is not only certified, but also the president of the International Federation of Fly Fishers.

The local eight-week school is a bargain at $125 for non-member adults and $60 for students age 12-17.

The price includes the huge bonus of a club membership. Members enjoy options to join club-led outings and events that acquaint anglers with area streams and lakes and various fishing techniques and fly tying along with club camaraderie.

Approximately 20 club outings per year are scheduled from March through October. The club has roughly 225 memberships, more than half of which are families.

Novices who haven’t purchased gear can use rods, reals and lines provided by the club for casting classes. More informed decision on buying gear can be made after testing club equipment and getting feedback from instructors.

Info: Claude Kistler, clkistler@comcast.net, (509) 747-2268 or spokaneflyfishers.com.