Sisters on the Fly Hit the Road
by Kris King Photos courtesy of AKA, Purple Fussy Mittens
Sisters on the Fly’s motto is “we have more fun than anyone.” The ladies saddle up their “Cowgirl Caravan” of customized vintage trailers and drive from adventure to adventure. These adventures are primarily centered around fly fishing, but Sisters on the Fly’s calendar also includes events ranging from Chili Cookoffs to Cowgirl College. They are a crafty bunch too; when the women aren’t on fly fishing trips or decorating their trailers, many sisters are making goods to sell on the Web site; from barbed wire chandeliers to denim aprons, trailer curtains, and Crazy Aunties Western Bedding.
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Big Catch
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Sisters on the Fly was begun, not surprisingly, by sisters; Maurrie Sussman and her sister Becky Clarke were enjoying a fly fishing trip in Montana and decided that they were having too much fun not to share it with other women. Clarke recalls, “We were having a fabulous time, catching some huge browns and rainbows.” Sussman adds, “Our conversation turned to the fact that our friends were always so jealous of both Becky and myself on our adventures that we decided to invite some friends to come along.”
Sisters on the Fly was founded in 1998 and now has 730 sisters ranging from ages 21 to 87, and each has her own sister number. Clarke was busy with work and unable to put in the initial hours that Sisters on the Fly needed; Sussman recalls, “I said OK, I will take it to the moon. And we are doing a pretty good job of it.” Sisters on the Fly’s Mission Statement is “Offering empowerment and sisterhood through exceptional outdoor adventures.” Sussman’s daughter Tara says, “I always knew that my mom was going to do something like this, something big, and something for women.”
Their Web site beckons potential sisters: “You are encouraged to join us on one of our trips and let yourselves be spoiled rotten PLUS learn to fish, learn to be a real Western Cowgirl, run rivers, go on adventures that are just pure highway traveling fun. The best part is gathering new sisters you didn’t know you had.” Suzanne Buck, Sister #182, of Troy, Montana, says, “Laughing is not only OK but can barely be stopped with this group of women, except to concentrate for a while to bring ’em in.” Martha McLane, Sister #308, says, “To join you’ve got to want to have fun and laugh; it’s not a competitive thing. It’s a bonus to catch fish, but it’s nice just to be out there on the water.”
Sussman explains the early years of Sisters on the Fly: “For about the first two years we did not number anyone; then we started just to keep everyone in some kind of order so that we could keep track.” Maurrie is Sister #1 and Becky is Sister #2, with their mother, Mazie, who taught them to fish while growing up, the oldest sister #0. McLane agrees. “Mazie is a kick; she wears peddle pushers and Keds and still fishes.”
Sussman, who now lives in Arizona, says, “Our family has been in Montana since 1969 and it is the ‘love’ of my life. Never have I loved a home like I do the state of Montana.” Sussman recalls working in Billings, “I did commercial landscaping installations. Bringing up my two children in Montana was a treat and being in the business we were in, we were able to wander all the back roads.” Her son Austin continues the legacy as a fly fishing outfitter out of Bozeman. Daughter Tara Lowder is Sister #102 and helps cook on the Montana trips.
Lowder says, “The experience has been amazing. It’s fun to be in the background and see all the different types of women from all over the country with different personalities, but they are all so happy to be on the trips. It’s been interesting to see them let their guard down and relax because it’s just the girls. They come in from the day of fishing ready for cocktails and conversation.”
The idea of incorporating trailers into fishing adventures began with Sussman’s trips to Montana. “I wanted a small trailer to bring up to Montana each year in which Austin and I could go checking out the rivers...and I could stay in friends’ driveways in my own small bedroom,” recalls Sussman. Today, many Sisters on the Fly have their own trailers, each trailer with its own personality and name. Sussman says, “When I met ‘Lucy’ she was for sale here in Phoenix, a 1958 Holliday. She was ugly, but at first sight I was in love and knew just how she was going to transform herself into a beauty. I hauled her home and started redoing her insides and outsides.”
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Debbie Rocky Casts her fly
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Sussman explains how the trailer fever grew, “My sister Becky wanted one and then it just went nuts. We were in Country Living Magazine and it went from there.” Clark recalls, “After that article came out we started getting all sorts of women who wanted to join our group.” Debra Bolnick had owned an antique store and recalls how she became a Sister on the Fly, “Having seen Maurrie and her sister, Becky, in Country Living Magazine, I thought I too needed to incorporate my sense of adventure with the girls, and if it meant doing it with vintage trailers, antiques, fishing rods, chaps, and comrades, so be it. What better way to pull up a bar and bed than on wheels?” Bolnick now has four vintage trailers. “My first purchase was a 1962 Kencraft that Marilyn Mason Drwyer of Butte painted in the coldest part of winter with no heat nor light in a small warehouse, but the ‘Annie Lee Rose’ was worth it and a beauty,” she says. “I am a collector and would have 10 if I only had a place to store all of them.” Shanahan says, “Our mobile homes go from cheerful in chintz, to romantic in silks, to practical in leathers, but all have clever combinations of imagination.”
Bolnick explains the allure of vintage trailers, “Unless you are the proud owner of one, you can’t imagine the fun they bring into your life. These old trailers aren’t just any old trailers you see... they are decorated with antiques, fabulous fabrics, down comforters, drapes, rugs, and priceless kitchen ornamentations. People are awestruck when they actually walk into one. They bring back old family memories of camping for some people, and for others, they want to ‘hitch’ a ride.”
Initially, the Sisters on the Fly all had vintage trailers, but that has changed. “Another couple of years went by before we finally realized we were keeping women from joining us because they did not have a trailer... You hurt people without even knowing that you are doing so. If we had looked at it then, we would probably have 1,000 members now.” While Sisters on the Fly has resources to help women who want their own trailer, their Web site explains that to join the trips, “we have added tents, back of trucks, motels, and horse trailers and just about anything you want to put your brand on. It is not a must to have a trailer.”
While the Sisters enjoy traveling in their Cowgirl Caravan, arriving at their destination isn’t bad either. Their upcoming calendar has a diverse array of trips to choose from: Cowgirl Woodstock in Waxahachie, Texas; fly fishing in Boca Grande, Florida; a Hillbilly Hoe-Down in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; the Texas World Champion Chili Cookoff; and of course, Cowgirl College. Sisters on the Fly’s upcoming Montana trips include the “Big Sky Montana Adventure,” starting in Livingston and fishing on the Yellowstone and Madison Rivers, with a foray into Yellowstone Park, and “Big Fun Under the Big Sky of Montana,” which includes camping, sapphire mining, a boat and historic tour, train ride, BBQ, and symphony under the stars that meets in Helena. Sisters on the Fly’s adventures were filmed for a feature on the Travel Channel, and the segment still continues to air.
McLane recalls, “Last summer there was a cowgirl prom near Melrose, Montana, so everyone came in their cowgirl prom dresses complete with tiaras or cowgirl hats and we had a BBQ on the banks of the Bighole River. It’s a great bunch of gals who like to laugh and have a lot of fun and fish. And they can handle a fly rod.”
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Decorated trailers of members of Sisters on the Fly
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Shawn Schumacher, Sister #299, recalls that her first impression of the women of Sisters on the Fly was that they were like her but had an extra enzyme for metabolizing life. She had never fished before and says of her first trip with the sisters, “That trip truly changed my life. I found that enzyme.... I now fly fish, own a vintage trailer, and I have wonderful friends that I communicate and share life with, as well as fish with.”
Sisters on the Fly’s Web site www.sistersonthefly.com has photos from their trips; a calendar of upcoming outdoor adventures; online registration to join the group; pictures of the trailers; links to vintage trailer sales, restoration, and customization; and online sales of cowgirl gear, trailer gear, and Sisters on the Fly items including customized belt buckles, quilts, cowgirl pillows, aprons, and purses, Sisters on the Fly license plate frames, postcards, T-shirts, hats, and even limited-edition artwork.
To become a “sister,” you need only to register, pay the $35 annual fee, and get ready to “have more fun than anyone.” Their Web site states, “We have no age or color restrictions. We represent no religion or political group. We welcome all women who want to share the adventures of ‘sisterhood’.” Membership dues include your own sisterhood number to put on the back of your caravan vehicle, invitations to all events, a newsletter, member-only Internet updates, and access to the busy chatroom.
Visit www.sistersonthefly.com to join, shop, or learn more.
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