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“The Story”

… of how we got to here

In the Summer of 1996, the number one song on the Billboard chart was Macarena by Los Del Rio. Music was in transition; some would say a slump. We would fall in the latter camp. Pretty much sums up where we were in life.

We each needed a slump buster. Our jobs were meaningless and exhausting. While one of us was in a soul crushing relationship and the beginning stages of sobriety, the other was dealing with a recent divorce and in the beginning stages of making meaning. At the time, we were blinded by these “slumps.” However, one new idea would profoundly change our lives, creating new beginnings and a beautiful tradition. Frankly, we never imagined what this tradition would become.

The idea came from a men’s magazine. Our Chief Planner, Joe, mentioned that he read an article in a since forgotten magazine, about a group of guys dedicated to a fishing trip every year. Looking for a way to add some positivity to our lives, the idea festered.

One week night before closing up the bar where we worked, Guys Fishing Weekend was born. “GFW” as we now affectionately call it, was created to be an affordable 4-day men’s weekend in the mountains of Colorado, doing something we really enjoyed: Fishing.

THE CREW

On the fateful first GFW, there were three of us. Through the years, that number grew and shrunk and grew and shrunk. We figured out the difficulty involved in building and retaining a quality group of guys to share time with. As the years progressed, we saw many different faces come and go, which ultimately culminated in the six mainstays who regularly attend now.

In the early trips, inviting someone to join us consisted of a grand total of three questions: Do they fish? Do they play poker? And maybe, do they snore? If the answer was “yes” to the first two, the invite got the thumbs up. But after some friends found other life priorities or drifted apart, we began to understand there was more to this than just getting away for a weekend of fishing. We weren’t sure what we stumbled across, but we started to understand there was something more “meaningful” about this time we spent together.

Our commitment to the mission of GFW, includes a willingness to throw out the welcome mat for newcomers; that’s a big reason why we are starting this venture. But the invite to a Noob isn’t something to be taken lightly and requires a discussion…out of respect for all six who sacrifice to make this weekend happen. And while GFW is a relaxing, joy filled weekend, it does require sacrifice from all of our families. This isn’t lost on us.

THE EVENT

What started as a competition, originally had River Day and Boat Day. Awards were given for First Fish, Largest Fish and Most Fish. The main tenets of the trip were to create a long weekend 5-star vacation, with great accommodations, home cooked restaurateur feasts, a variety of cocktails, gold medal water worthy fishing, and backroom gambling, all for the lowest price point possible to encourage the greatest number of our main friends to attend. An under-promise, over-delivery of sorts.

At the start, finding a cabin in the mountains was easy enough. A long forgotten time before hundreds in cleaning fees while also being asked to mop. The accommodations were cheaper, let’s just say that.

One man managed all the food, creating a ceremonial routine of shopping and meal prepping during the week before departure. Eat good, fish good some say.

The night cap was always poker. With a steep buy-in of $5 (not inflation adjusted), many men have left “how am I going to tell my wife” poor, while others have walked away with enough wealth to buy a half tank of gas (inflation adjusted). Much more about the moment than the money, but victory is still so sweet.

Historically, the trip began and ended with a road trip. Partly because gas was under $0.99/gallon, but also because it created more connection surface area. Our cars became safe spaces to discuss life’s trials. The cars became where our problems were heard.

Over time, the formal fishing competition traditions have faded. While we do hit various bodies of water daily, we don’t fish with the same intensity we once did. As the morning recovery time from the night before has become a necessity, fishing has become merely a delivery device for connection, like a bagel is for cream cheese.

Somehow, over the years we changed. Perhaps, we matured and grew as men, but mostly we still act like boys. The weekend began to change for us and what we wanted. The time together became something more aligned with our values. We like to think those values were always there, or maybe GFW created them… who knows?

THE EVOLUTION

This year we are headed out on our 27th year. Over the years, we have regrettably forgotten many of the stories created on these trips, lost to the depths of our brains, probably never to be uncovered again. Out of this desire to capture more of our times together and to share what we have learned from many years on the water with our fellow men, we created guysfishingweekend.com.

This will be a place where we document our trips, escapades and daily thoughts; a place we are able to share some wisdom and laughs. Recommendations of fishing trips and the gear we use to make them possible will be included. Hopefully our stories will shine as a north star for your own trip.

The ultimate goal now of GFW is to create a community of fishermen who share their stories as well. So with that, let’s get out there.

Go catch the world.

Together.

– The GFW Boys

What We Are Watching

A great video of a wild adventure that the guys at Wild Fly Productions undertook. ‘Bikepacking’ through the backwoods of Idaho. Example of a great “guys weekend” (although they indulged for a little longer… cheaters).

Trip We Are Dreaming About

Fly Fishing Alaska’s Back Country

River Thoughts…

• The real gauge of friendship is how clean your house needs to be before they come over. (Reddit u/teapotmonkey)

• All men at a bar, either straight or gay, hope that any other good looking men there are gay. (Reddit u/hungrytiredandbored)

• The definition of a submarine is not a ship that can go underwater, but a ship that can go back up. (Reddit u/Tabris2k)

• To not expose his identity Batman is either driving the batmobile uninsured or is committing insurance fraud. (Reddit u/tearsaresweat)

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