The Texas Women Fly Fishers took Galveston by storm just one week before Hurricane Rita. Talk about good timing! Our third saltwater adventure brought us to Galveston for a first class mullet mixer, the continuation of our fly rod raffle and silent auction, a great day for fishing, and a fabulous dinner at Gaido's Family Restaurant.

Kimberly Gaido and Ellen Matthews hosted a delicious shrimp boil at the Gaido family home facing Galveston’s West Bay. Sarah served up the best jalapeno poppers and potatoes to accompany the main dish. There was an assortment of other wonderful side dishes, too. So many auction items were displayed for round one of competitive bidding. Stacy Trimble offered a double haul clinic that many women took part in. Hauling is a method used to increase the distance the line travels during the false cast – a very good skill to develop for saltwater fly fishing.

We were divided into three groups, one for each guide hired to lead us. Unfortunately, one of the guides cancelled at the last minute, so the most experienced fisher women and paddlers planned to set out with Kimberly and Stacy sans hired guide. The groups gathered to discuss the details of their plans to meet Saturday morning.

Kimberly drew for door prizes and many in attendance went home with little extras. The raffle drawing was so exciting. Lavene Jones won the 4-piece, 5 weight Sage with case donated by Sportsman's Finest in Austin. And, Jim Stephenson won the 4 piece, 8 wt Temple Fork Outfitters rod with case donated by Mountain River Fly Shop in Cotter, Arkansas. Congratulations, Lavene and Jim!

Saturday morning the weather was perfect and three groups set off in different directions. The fish were so active, darting around the shallow water bay as the kayaks entered their domain. The water was a little off color, so we had to blind cast for the fish. Robert Anderson caught the largest red fish at 19", Stacy Trimble took the honors for trout, and Linda Love caught a good size flounder. They would all receive a prize for their catch later that evening at dinner. For the most part not many people caught fish, however we all got the opportunity to hone our casting skills and improve our paddling abilities. All the practice will pay off at future saltwater outings. Stealth is an essential element of successful saltwater fly fishing from a kayak, it comes with practice.

Saturday evening we met at Gaido's for seafood dinner. A very nice private room was reserved for us. We continued our auction throughout dinner, with a final dash for last minute bids when dessert was served. Kimberly introduced a story telling contest. Several women shared their adventures of the day, and a prize was awarded to Kerri Stephenson for her "Nemo" story. As you may imagine, she caught a very tiny fish – unknowingly. She thought the metal spoons were difficult to cast, only to discover she had a tiny fish on and didn’t know it.

We conducted our business meeting after dinner so we could fish on Sunday morning without interruption. This was one of our very best outings to date. Galveston is a beautiful place, and there are so many places in the back bays to fish in kayaks. Hopefully we can return next year and catch more fish! Thank you, Kimberly, for coordinating this fantastic opportunity for the Texas Women Fly Fishers.