| Cecilia “Pudge” Kleinkauf,
Fishing |
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| "People are surprised that Arctic grayling
is another favorite. Their coloration in the water is beautiful,
and they have a big dorsal fin—unique among freshwater
fish." |
| Who she is:
Alaska resident for 35 years. Owned and operated Women’s
Fly Fishing for 18 years. |
| Don't miss: Take
a nature tour to Halibut Cove, with a stop at the Gull Island
rookery |
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| How did you get into fishing? |
| When I came up to Alaska in ’69, I hadn’t
fished much, but my ex-husband and son did, so I started as well.
My son took a fly class and really took to it. Since he seemed to
be catching all the fish, I wanted him to teach me, but it never
happened. Finally, a woman I met at a cocktail party took me fly
fishing for the first time, on the Russian River. Then I took a
number of classes and really liked it—no more spin fishing. |
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| How did you start your fly fishing
guide business? |
| When I’d go fly fishing, women would stop me
on the river or in the parking lot and say, “I’ve always
wanted to learn. Where did you learn? Do you teach?” Friends
always wanted me to take them. The woman who first took me said
she didn’t know enough to teach, and she didn’t know
of any women who taught. She’d been looking, though, and all
these women had been looking too. So the idea formed. I’d
fished for several years at that point and taken a few classes,
so I knew enough to help them get started. |
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| What’s your favorite thing about
fishing? |
| I like to be outdoors, on the river—they’re
fascinating, wonderful places. Fly fishing enables me to lose myself,
and the day can pass so quickly. With spin fishing, you just sling
it out and reel it back as fast as you can. Fly fishing is more
complex—to select the fly, to make the right cast and the
correct drift. It’s an interesting challenge. |
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| What kind of fishing do you like best? |
| When the salmon are running, they’re my favorite.
Rainbow trout are such a challenge because they’re so active;
they zing and zoom and really carry on. People are surprised that
Arctic grayling is another favorite. Their coloration in the water
is beautiful, and they have a big dorsal fin—unique among
freshwater fish. |
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| What have you learned through the
years? |
| You don’t have to have a perfect cast or be
an expert on all the intricacies of fly fishing. Some get enjoyment
from that, but most people don’t need that to catch fish.
What people want is the challenge and the fun of hooking a fish
on a fly. Also, I learned how much I enjoy getting others “hooked”
on the sport. |
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| Guides help others catch fish. Don’t
you miss doing it yourself? |
| Sometimes. But I really get a big charge getting people
started. I love to be with people when they get their first fish,
or their first salmon on a fly rod. They get so excited, and I get
excited. |
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| What are your best fishing stories? |
| I was on the Brooks River, in Katmai—which is
one of my favorite places—during a phenomenal sockeye run.
I set up the four women I was guiding on the channel, and you’ve
never seen so much catching. A fish every single cast. They were
whooping and hollering, carrying on. Tourists were standing on a
trail up on a bank and just watching. |
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| What do visitors get out of going
fishing? |
For many people, they can’t catch a salmon
anywhere else. Some just want to see one. Our wild rainbows are
legendary also. Some people don’t even know that arctic
grayling exist—they’re wiped out virtually everywhere
else. They come to Alaska and see one and go berserk—saying
they’re so beautiful, how lucky you are to have fish like
this. Same thing with Dolly varden char. Maybe people come to
catch halibut—something people have always wanted to do.
Visitors also come for the beauty of this rare environment. No
matter who does the survey, Alaska is always in the top three
places people have always wanted to go. Fishing is a great way
to see the state—a little more interactive than just driving
down the Seward Highway. You can be in one of those beautiful
places, and also be catching a salmon. |
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| Who is fishing best for? |
| For any kind of angler, Alaska is fishing paradise.
You could spend several weeks just on the Kenai Peninsula, catching
salmon, rainbows, and Dolly varden char, heading down to Homer or
Seward for halibut. I get lots of people who are totally new to
fishing. Many older women come to try fly fishing, now that their
kids are raised; they may be divorced or widowed. They want to do
something outdoors; maybe they’re not up for mountain climbing,
but fly fishing and kayaking are very appealing. A surprising amount
of women come who never had the opportunity to fish growing up—the
boys would go and the girls stayed home. Now they’re older
and more in control. A number of guys give their women a fly fishing
class for Christmas. He wants her to pick up the sport so they can
do it together, but knows better than to do the teaching himself. |
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| Name the top three spots for fishing
in Alaska. How do they differ? |
I have to fish Brooks River every year—it’s
not a summer if I don’t go there. This is one of the two
places where most of those classic photos are taken—the
bears at the waterfall catching the fish as they jump. Brooks
River is only two miles long, and in the middle is this waterfall,
which impedes the fish’s progress—and the bears know.
It’s a spectacle, just amazing to watch. At the same time,
this tiny river has rainbows, big grayling, and sockeye—three
wonderful species, each of which take different skills. It’s
a beautiful river, and Brooks Lodge is one of my favorites. I’ve
taken clients here, and gone here myself, for many years.
I also love the Tangle Lakes area, on the Old Denali Highway.
The fish aren’t big, but it’s another beautiful spot
and it’s steeped in anthropological history—where
the wandering people followed caribou herds. You see a lot of
trails that the caribou used and use. There are lovely, sparkling
little creeks and super lakes dotting the area, and all hold grayling.
The scenic vistas you see as you drive that river get under your
skin—you can really imagine the Eskimo people following
the caribou over these hills. It’s also a birder’s
paradise.
Another great spot is Kodiak Island, which has some wonderful
fishing, for salmon especially. Lots of accessible rivers—mostly
short tidal rivers that dump into saltwater, which makes for fun
and different fishing. It’s Alaska’s Emerald Island,
with very beautiful, green hills. I cover all three of these places
in my book, Fly Fishing Women Explore Alaska. Each chapter talks
about a special place and a unique fish species we’ve targeted
there, with stories that encapsulate the techniques for catching
it. |
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| Can I fish unguided? What’s
the value of a fishing guide? |
Some experienced anglers can go to a place and
watch what other anglers are doing on the river. They ask a lot
of questions at the local sporting goods store, read guidebooks
or watch a video, and do pretty well unguided. Other people may
plan 5 or 6 days on a river and go once with the guide to learn
what the guide knows: where to go, which flies, and how to fish
the flies. Then they can go by themselves.
But with a guide you will probably catch more, because the guide
does this for a living—knowing this watershed, river, or lake.
Most good guides enhance the experience by pointing out eagles in
the trees or showing you which berries are ripe as you fish from
the bank. Many are real birders or entomologists. They guide because
they love Alaska, and they transmit that to people. |
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| What’s the value of a women-only
trip? |
| Women tell me that they can relax; they don’t
feel any sense of needing to be perfect or to catch a lot of fish.
Besides the fun of fishing or learning to fly fish, they love meeting
all these new women over a glass of wine and gabbing about the fish
they caught or missed. It’s a great way for a lot of women
to be outside together. |
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| Describe your interaction with
clients. |
| A lot depends on whether they’re beginners
or more experienced. I provide all the flies and gear, as needed,
and help each client one-on-one. I’ll talk about which fly
to use, how they should fish the fly, and what cast to use. Women
especially want to know why. Why did it get away? Why this stretch
of river? Why this fly? So there’s a lot of discussion. There’s
always a lot of excitement when somebody’s hooked up to a
fish. The rest of us are cheering, encouraging her, telling her
what to do. Everyone’s participating. People get acquainted
with each other and hear about past trips. I want to make it a fun
and interesting day. One woman called about booking a trip and asked
if I “hollered” at people. No, I don’t—but
some guides do. |
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| What should I know about planning
an Alaska fishing trip? |
Do your homework. Check out books, videos,
and websites. Call the Department of Fish & Game and talk
to one of the sport fish biologists—it’s their job
to schmooze, and they love it. Don’t assume you can figure
it out when you arrive. Ask about which the fish will be running
when you’ll be here. One group came for kings in June; no
one told them they didn’t run until July. Other people assume
every fish is in every river all the time.
Doing your homework is especially important if you’re fishing
at a lodge. Check their references—even if you only get
their “good” references, you can get important details
with the right questions. Make sure the lodge’s license
is current, and that they have liability insurance. Don’t
assume they wouldn’t be in business if they weren’t
good—you don’t want to find out that you’re
wrong the hard way. Coming to Alaska is a big trip—that’s
your summer and your money. |
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