From Angler to Outfitter: Building a Life as a Fly Fishing Guide
Coleman Savage
Fly Fisher, Fly Tier, Guide
★ ★ ★ ★ ★What does it really take to turn a passion for fly fishing into a profession? Montana guide and outfitter Coleman Savage shares his journey from fly-shop jobs to guiding—and how Guiding for the Future helped accelerate his growth. Discover why becoming a great guide requires far more than catching fish, and how knowledge of river ecology, conservation, water rights, stewardship, client relationships, and professionalism can transform a guide’s career and their connection to the waters they depend on. Join us to learn about his journey.
Just a few of the questions asked and answered during the interview:
- How did your early experiences in Virginia and the Bahamas shape your connection to fishing and eventually lead you toward becoming a professional guide?
- Before guiding became your profession, when did you first begin thinking, “I could actually make a living doing this?”
- You worked several fly-shop jobs before you began guiding in 2021. What did working in fly shops teach you that helped prepare you for guiding?
- When you got started, did you have another job, or did you go all in on guiding?
- What was your first season as a professional fly fishing guide really like, and what surprised you most about the job?
- Many anglers probably imagine guiding as spending every day fishing. How different is the reality of being a guide from what people imagine it to be?
- When you were starting out, who were the guides or mentors who helped you most, and what did you learn from watching experienced professionals work with clients?
- How long did it take before you began feeling like a competent professional guide rather than simply a good angler taking people fishing?
- Do most guides prefer that clients bring their own rods, reels, and flies, or use guide-provided equipment?
- You discovered Guiding for the Future through the Fishing Outfitters Association of Montana. What caught your attention about the program, and why did you decide to participate so early in your guiding career?
- Before Guiding for the Future, how much did you think about subjects such as river ecology, hydrology, water rights, conservation law, and the history behind public waterways?
- If someone listening to us today is a good fly fisher who is thinking about becoming a guide, what should they understand before deciding to make that leap?
