The “No Yelling” School of Fishing.

There was a literal “Lights! Cameras! Action!” aspect to my President’s Day weekend in Islamorada, Florida where I attended the “Ladies’ Let’s Go Fishing!” (LLGF) course as a beginner.

During the three-day event—from November 11-13— Betty Bauman, the Founder of LLGF, struck a good balance between sit-down and interactive learning throughout the seminar. Friday night (Veterans Day, which happened to fall on 11-11-11) kicked off the weekend with a welcome reception and networking party. On Saturday, it consisted of morning seminars and afternoon skill stations, followed by a dinner party at an art gallery. Sunday closed the diverse weekend by giving us the opportunity to go on one of several “Party Boats” where we could apply all that we’d learned out on the water with fishing rods in hand.

There were 60 ladies who participated (35 beginners and 25 advanced). They came from all over North America, including Canada, California, Michigan and of course, Florida. Of the 60 ladies, 40 went out on the water on Sunday to fish and caught a total of 333 fish—an average of 8 fish per angler.

Jane Tomlinson Photo

On the first of three action-packed days in the Keys, I met Elizabeth Schmitt and her film crew. She was there to both attend the seminar and to film it for her new TV show, Pushing the Limits—a show that is about the different types of fishing out there—which is set to be released sometime this year.

Elizabeth said she has never been let down by the course, which is why she has taken it three times. “I’ve always loved the seminars and there is always something new to learn. The lecturers are well-picked and are very knowledgeable. I absolutely love picking their brains. I have never walked away disappointed or without learning a new technique or theory.” This is particularly noteworthy since Elizabeth has been fishing from the time she was a little girl and has even contributed to fishing magazines on several occasions.

On the second day, Betty planned it so that the morning consisted of seminars from several experts in the field, featuring male and female captains, fisherman, etc. Our lunch buffet was held on the roof of Holiday Isle (our host hotel), overlooking the Atlantic. Shortly after lunch, the class went outside by the pool to watch Betty reel in a “human fish,” guest-starring a man in a wetsuit named Larry. She did this to show the ladies how to reel in even the strongest fish while standing up, no matter how little or much she might weigh.

Afterwards, the ladies walked to water’s edge to participate in several exhibit/skill stations. That’s where I learned how to gaff (using a grapefruit) and flyfish. Other ladies learned how to correctly throw a net, operate a boat, tie knots and so forth.

Maria de los Angeles, an Award-Winning freelance writer, was also there to cover the event. She’s a professional blogger who edits and writes for MiamiBeach411.com. Though she enrolled in the Beginner’s class, Maria used to fish on and off every weekend in the Everglades with her then boyfriend. However, it has been 10 years since she’s held a fishing rod because after they parted ways, going fishing was harder to do on her own. Maria said she remembers that when he and she would go fishing, they never used fishing terminology, but just enjoyed the experience.

Laura Dunn Photo

After she took the seminar, Maria said it was actually helpful to know the science of fishing. She was particularly grateful for the hour-long “Fishing Basics” seminar with Captain Lee Lavery on Saturday morning, because it helped her learn those once-foreign fishing terms.

Happy to come back to the world of fishing, Maria describes fishing like this: “There’s a particular smell—kinda sweet—and birds are waking up and flying around and the water is peaceful. There’s a Zen to it that makes you relax.” (She got in touch with Betty after watching a River Monsters marathon with “extreme angler,” Jeremy Wade, and realized how much she missed fishing.)

It’s no wonder why the Ladies’ Let’s Go Fishing! seminar celebrated their 15th anniversary this year. There are now 20 companies providing sponsorship; $3,500 was raised during their raffle and silent auction, the proceeds of which go towards the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation, a co-partner of the seminar.

Pictured are two of the outdoor skill stations on Saturday afternoon. Jane Tomlinson Photo

Betty intuitively plans each weekend so that each lady— regardless of her skill level at the beginning of the course—can become more confident and passionate about what she is doing while fishing. Thanks to LLGF, I am among those growing number of women who can. ladiesletsgofishing.com