It is rare to meet a young woman with skill, incredible passion and active involvement in the sport of fly fishing. It is even more rare when that young woman has been fly fishing almost since she could hold a rod, and spends four months of the year in the Alaskan bush country. Until just recently, I would have laughed at even the vague notion that such a person might exist. But, my friends, she does.
Her name is Camille Egdorf. She was kind enough to agree to meet for an interview recently. This being the first time I had ever interviewed a better-known personality, or really anyone for that matter, I was understandably nervous. But her easy-going attitude and ready smile quickly put me at ease.
Amid the noise and bustle of the popular Rockford Coffee, I could immediately tell this is someone who is passionate about fly fishing. The happy smile, the spark in the eye, the excited tone of voice all combined to say this is a subject close to her heart. It is always a pleasure to talk to someone who has such obvious love for what they do.
Camille is the daughter of Dave and Kim Egdorf. The family owns and operates fishing camps on the Nushagak and King Salmon River in Alaska. This lucky girl has spent almost every one of her 19 years travelling back and forth between the wilds of the Alaskan bush and her home in Montana. I can think of scores of people off the top of my head who would consider that just about the perfect arrangement, myself included.
Camille spent her first summer on the Nushagak at the tender age of six months old, living in a box in the kitchen. From that early age, she has been surrounded by fly fishing. Her first fly rod was a gift from a guest at the camp, and she picked the sport up with enthusiasm. It must have been incredible, learning to fly fish on an Alaskan river that hardly sees any fishing pressure at all and is chock full to massive rainbows, salmon, grayling and more. In comparison, I learned to fly fish in my front yard. Not quite the same, is it?
Many of you have probably heard about Camille and her family’s fishing camps in the Felt Soul Media film Red Gold. This excellent film about the threatened Bristol Bay watershed features a segment shot on the Nushagak. I would highly recommend this film for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is raising awareness of threat Pebble Mine poses to the Bristol Bay watershed, but also to get a feel for what summers are like for Camille, her family and the people that sacrifice their everyday lives to live the dream.
But fly fishing is not the only sport that demands her attention. Camille is an accomplished hunter as well. Last year,
she took her first bull moose up in Alaska. She was gracious enough to tell me the story of that hunt, it sounded pretty amazing. I think amazing would be a good word to describe a lot about Ms. Egdorf. She also enjoys hunting birds and deer on her family’s place on the Bighorn River. In fact, the Egdorfs operate a hunting and fishing guiding business here in Montana: Last Stand Outfitters.
Last fall, Camille was in Redding, CA for six weeks with an internship with The Fly Shop. It was here that she fell in with some diehard steelheaders and first learned to spey cast. It is pretty obvious that chasing steelhead with a spey rod is something that she greatly enjoys. I even asked Camille straight up if she would rather go after trout or steelhead. After some hemming and hawing, she chose steelhead. As she was talking about it, her eyes lit up and she got that excited look on her face that anyone who fishes knows well. It is the look of sheer joy.
Camille has also joined the blogosphere, with her blog RIP LPS. This entertaining blog will give you a look into the life of someone who is probably more hardcore about fishing than most of the people reading this. Be sure to check out the awesome photography on the blog as well.
I asked her about the name RIP LPS, as those two words are on her truck’s license plates as well. She laughed and told me how she always wanted personalized plates. One day, she and her dad were trying to think of a good thing to say on there, and he suggested rip lips. (For those of you who haven’t heard that expression, it pertains to catching fish. Obviously.) Camille didn’t think the name would be open, so they went down to the courthouse and checked it out. Sure enough, it was free.
Camille is currently in college down here in the metropolis of Bozeman. Studying business management, her impression of Bozeman has been pretty good so far. She enjoys all the activities and events that are going on in the area. Coming from Hardin, MT and Alaska, I am sure Bozeman seems like the big city. She laughed about the traffic and said she tries to ride her bike everywhere in town. Not a bad idea, actually…
I have met a lot of folks over the years who fly fish. Some of them do it just because their friends do it or they consider it fashionable or chic. And then there are those who fish because they truly, deep down, have a driving passion for it. It is a main focus of their life. I believe that Camille Egdorf falls into the second category. Not only is she an amazing fly fisher, but am enjoyable person to be around. I was greatly impressed by this young woman, as anyone who meets her surely must be.
Tags: Women in Fly Fishing
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I LOVE to see a hot fly fisher chick!
Keep a tight line……