Some guests come on the show to talk tactics. Amber Leach came on Episode 140 to talk about why we fish in the first place, and she still managed to pack in some of the most useful advice I've heard for anglers making the jump from small home water to big western rivers. Amber is a freelance fly fishing writer and a guide out of Avon, Colorado, and she found the sport later in life, through grief, community, and a lot of stubbornness. Her story is a reminder that the water changes how you see things, if you let it.
Skinny Water Teaches You Fundamentals
Amber learned to fish in Kentucky and West Virginia, where, as she put it, it's mostly skinny water: narrow, shallow creeks under a canopy of brush and trees. There's basically no back cast. That means a lot of nymphing, some dry-fly work, very little streamer fishing, and a short rod.
If that's your home water, you're building skills that transfer:
- Roll casts and short, accurate presentations. When you can't load a back cast, you learn to place a fly with minimal line out.
- Stealth. Tight creeks punish sloppy wading and long shadows.
- Reading micro-water. Every pocket and undercut matters when the whole stream is ten feet wide.
Scaling Up to Big Western Water
Moving to Colorado opened everything up. Amber switched to a nine-foot rod and, for the first time, had room to throw a real back cast and properly present a dry fly. She also learned to fish streamers and to fish through winter, and she got her first experience floating big rivers like the Colorado. She noted the obvious trade-off too: more pressure and deeper water.
If you're making the same jump, here's how I'd translate her experience into a game plan:
- Go longer on the rod. A nine-footer helps mend line across multiple currents and keeps your back cast off the water.
- Add a streamer rig. Bigger, deeper water holds fish that won't come up for a dry. Learning to strip a streamer opens up water you'd otherwise skip.
- Don't fear winter. Western tailwaters fish all year. Slow down, fish deep, and dress for it.
- Take a guided trip early. Amber's own start included a guided trip, and it fast-tracked what she learned on her own.
Lessons from the New Guide in the Shop
Amber was candid about being the newbie at the shop. She told a great story about helping a young angler with her first fly fishing lesson when Amber herself had cast her first fly only about fourteen months earlier and, in her words, knew maybe six bugs. As it got dark and the water whitecapped, the girl was fishing an Elk Hair Caddis off a little jetty, casting and casting, and finally got a topwater eat from a rainbow. Folks across the river watched her land her first fish.
The teaching point: you don't need to be an expert to help someone catch a fish. A buoyant, visible fly like an Elk Hair Caddis, a good spot, and patience will do a lot of the work. Encouragement does the rest.
The Water Doesn't Discriminate
We spent a good part of the episode on what it's like being a woman on the water, often the only one. Amber was honest that the sport hasn't always felt welcoming, and equally clear that she's had plenty of people help her and offer advice along the way. Her line that stuck with me: the water doesn't discriminate. Trout don't care who's holding the rod.
Her advice to young anglers was refreshingly practical: ignore the social media noise, find your local people, and learn from them. She also pushed back on the idea that fly fishing has to be expensive to start. You don't need the newest gear to get on the water.
Gear
If you're stepping up from small creeks to bigger rivers, our Tips and Tricks for Fly Fishing eBook covers casting, rigging, and reading water. Bright western days call for a Five Panel Cap to cut the glare. And for the nine-foot rod or a box of caddis, do what Amber recommends: walk into your local fly shop and get to know the people there.
