Introducing: Gear Reviews with Treeline
December 15, 2020
This year has included less time fishing together, and more time scheming together for a fly fishing culture + community where we all can belong. So much of this future depends on collaboration and mutual support, aligned by shared goals and centered on understanding. Our collaborations are fostered when individuals can show up as their complete selves with awareness and vulnerability, embracing the complicated goodness that makes our lived experiences so unique. Since much of this work happens beyond the public lens, we’re going to start making introductions to shed light on what’s going on and the incredible people we’re honored to know. Let’s dive in!
Liz Thomas smiling on the Pacific Crest Trail
Meet Liz Thomas, hiking badass [and soon-to-be angler if we have anything to do with it] Liz at one point held the Appalachian Trail speed record, received the National Outdoor Book award for Backpacker Magazine Long Trails: Mastering the Art of the thru-Hike, is passionate about urban hiking and accessibility to the outdoors. We met at Outdoor Retailer back in 2019, schemed about breaking through exclusive outdoor culture bubbles, and agreed we should probably work together. Cut to this year with unexpected time on my hands after a cancelled calendar of programs, and with more people than ever running to wide open outdoor spaces in their free time, the stars aligned for some gear-related collaboration.
Treeline Review shares insight into the expansive nuance of outdoor gear, and until this point, fishing hasn’t been part of the conversation. We’re excited to change that together by launching a new section of Treeline’s gear reviews focused on fishing. Pushing for accessible and inclusive gear options in the sport has been an uphill battle of pink it and shrink it, limited sizing on waders, steep learning curves loaded with insider terminology, and marketing shouting out the most elite and expensive rods and reels available — it’s a messy world for any angling newbie to be thrown into. Thankfully, expanded offerings do mean more options that suit more people, and we’re here to parse through it all with you and keep pushing until every interested angler has what they need to get on the water.
Bri Dostie is pictured on a river in Maine with a native brook trout, caught while field testing beginner fly fishing kits for the review.
Much like the community we’re growing here at Confluence, Treeline Review brings together enthusiastic outdoors people who want to get everyone outside. They focus on making recommendations for gear that will function and withstand a long, loving life of use. Understanding that informed purchases help reduce impact on global emissions, gear reviews are crafted to help buyers get it right the first time. And much like Confluence Collective, information comes to the reader without curation from branded sponsorships or bought features for products: Treeline is showing up for community first and foremost, and that means amplifying voices of community. Besides the product testing and written review by an individual author and supporting editing team, information is aggregated from other reviews, customer feedback, and external gear vetting. Authors are trusted and experienced outdoors people. I’m honored to join this team of wonderful people.
Part of fly fishing’s exclusive culture? A steep learning curve with complicated gear and terminology to match. This gear review was written with beginner anglers in mind, and included in the editing process. Peep educational resources like this throughout!
We know fly fishing has become a new hobby for many socially distant fly curious individuals, but not without illustrating perpetuated inequity and exclusion. Fishing and Boating reports continue to erase identities, undercurrents of cis-heteronormative expectations and white, often male voices dominating leadership mean representation is still a pervasive issue. We can and must do better, and we can only attain this by working together and supporting each other— and commit to doing things differently. So, as we take this step into gear reviews and plan to bring you the best of what the angling industry can offer, know we’ll continue pressuring for better: for visions of fly fishing where we can see ourselves, for more than afterthoughts, for gear that considers every body type, for opportunities to learn and grow, and for thoughtful interactions and empowering experiences. Stay tuned for more projects and collaborations, and be sure to follow along for what will become a hub of information and recommendations through Treeline Review — starting with our first piece on beginner set-ups, with our two cents added!
Read: The Best Beginner Fly Fishing Combos for 2021