About Sanibel FlyFishers

We are a group dedicated to serving SW Florida fly fishing enthusiasts and to preserving the environment that supports our sport. We have grown from a small, casual group to one more organized around learning, teaching, and participating in fly fishing related activities. We welcome all those interested in fly fishing - you can join us if you make your home here, are visiting us, or just want to keep tabs from afar. All are welcome, and we are especially enthusiastic about increasing the number of women and younger fly fishers in our ranks.

The Club is active from Fall through Spring, holding monthly member meetings with guest speakers, fly tying nights, luncheons, casting clinics, and outings such as beach and kayak fishing. We publish a weekly newsletter to keep you up to date on club activities. We have volunteer opportunities for teaching and environmental improvement activities. We are always interested in hearing what activities would help you become a better angler. Our current annual membership fee is $40.

We embrace a culture of teaching and mentorship. Learning to fly fish in the salt can be daunting for beginners, but we want no one to be intimidated – we have many experienced members ready to share knowledge and provide guidance with those just starting out or needing an orientation to the area.

A great fishing club can’t exist without the fish, and we have increasingly turned our attention to the complex environmental challenges we face in SW Florida. This is done through our support of such groups as the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Fund (SCCF), Captains for Clean Water, and our own direct advocacy activities.

Most recently, generous donors and the club’s fundraising activity have made it possible to help educate the future stewards of our environment by establishing an endowment fund that supports two scholarships for students in the FGCU Water School. The Club has also been able to fund support for interns at the SCCF Marine Research Lab. We typically hold an annual fund-raising event to support the club’s ongoing activities and its charitable functions.

Above all, we have found great joy in fly fishing the waters of Sanibel and its surroundings. Our club will be a success if we can help you discover that joy. For those of you who are not yet members, please consider joining us.

Fishing

People who don’t fish think that fishing is an activity done on or close to the water. But fishing is more than that; it’s a way of life for many. The planning, the gear cleaning and maintenance, tying leaders, tying flies, thinking of the next spot, the best tides, moon phase, and barometric pressure - all of that is fishing.

When we ‘fish’, we walk, we wade, we kayak, we boat, and we use local guides.

Sanibel FlyFishers embraces the fly fishing journey; we come together to share our passion with a community.

You never finish learning to fly fish, we are all at different stages of our progression and we welcome and support folks who are new to the sport, or just interested in trying it out.

Conservation

We are dedicated to fly fishing and natural resource conservation.

We believe we are stewards of the natural resources that surround and support us. We shoulder the responsibility to ensure that those coming after us will have an opportunity to immerse themselves in nature and perhaps in fly fishing. It’s bigger than we are - it is our legacy.

Our strategy for conservation action is twofold. We voice our opinions to governmental officials on issues of natural resource management in our area, and we raise money to fund conservation research in our region.

People don’t get to choose whether they leave a legacy, but we shape what that legacy will be.

Education

We believe in conservation education.  To improve the future of natural resources, we can help foster a new generation of resource managers – the professional nature stewards of the future.  We raise funds to help educate and provide practical experience to young conservationists.

Sometimes conservation can be overwhelming - but we can do this one thing; and we believe it will help.

The mission of Sanibel FlyFishers has four cornerstones:

Fishing, Conservation, Education, and Community.

“Sanibel FlyFishers” was established in 2002 around the dining room table of Norm “Mr. Snook” Zeigler’s home on Sanibel. Norm, along with friends and fishing partners, Dave Ford and Dick White, decided it was time to spread the word about the great fishing opportunities available to saltwater anglers in the Sanibel area.

The Club, from its original three pioneer members, now boasts a membership list in excess of 100.

“Sanibel FlyFishers” is an affiliate of FlyFishers International (FFI) and is a 501(c)3 Non-profit.

In addition to our major support of conservation education, we financially support the following organizations:

Captains For Clean Water
Sanibel Sea School
Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation
Fish With A Hero

As a club, our members donate time to Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation, Coastal Watch, and The Boy Scouts of America.