They made me feel immediately at home, made me feel seen and understood and welcome. I hadn’t expected to be embraced by strangers and to feel comfortable enough to actually speak to a group I’d never met before. I actually expected to make some kind of excuse a day into the campout, find some reason to go home early. But we got to the last day and I felt a pang of sadness because I didn’t want to see everyone leave.

I met the most beautiful people and am coming home feeling inspired, empowered, and wiser. I am so grateful for every person I met on this journey for teaching me something new. Whether it was a deeper understanding of nature, the name of fish and berries and flowers, the meaning of true diversity, the feeling of being loved by strangers that quickly became my friends and will forever be a part of my life, the knowledge that we as women are truly capable of anything, and the power of unity…thank you to every single person I met for welcoming me with open arms and total inclusion.

The weekend made me believe in humanity again.

I am so impressed with how this series has been organized. The space created for women, the resources, and the way we can bring these conversations back to what we love to do.

I am grateful for this group - for the opportunity to learn and grow and be a part of a more inclusive and diverse community of fishers. I am all ears, at this point. Just taking everything in. The first two sessions were substantive, and I appreciate the guided learning.

A major, massive THANK YOU for all you do and who you are! The Horizons Fly Fishing Program has been a highlight and it’s just getting started! I am so glad we got hooked up with you…the leader to our tippet! Thank you for your energy, excitement, knowledge, and passion! It is contagious!

A big lesson for me was the inner reflection while there…and I think that is good for mental mindset, especially in a sport that can be quite challenging and frustrating a lot of the time. I need to do more of that in my day-to-day life.

I got to spend a long weekend in Darby, MT with some of the most vibrant and generous and loving people I’ve ever met. Made some wonderful new friends and learned so much that my brain can hardly contain it all. We’re doing it again next year and I can’t wait to live in moments like this again.

I feel so grateful that my first lessons were with this accepting community. At the Campout, the organizers normalized all my fears of getting tangled, caught in trees, losing flies, catching rocks, and falling in rivers. "This happens to all of us...no matter how long we've been doing this" was the motto and it really made me feel like the things I spent months being afraid of doing in front of others wasn't such a big deal at the actual event.

This stands out as one of the best weekends of my year. It was amazing, truly, to connect with other fly fishers and share our passions. Every single person was incredibly nice and open to teaching and learning. I’ll be certain to come back every year!

I had so much fun. I was impressed by the leadership, flexibility, and generosity of the atmosphere.

From the moment I arrived to the moment I left, I felt welcomed, supported and such amazing camaraderie. This is by far one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had in my life, everyone who attended were absolutely amazing to be around and I wholeheartedly miss them all, and the conversations and the activities we did while at this camp out. Serene and Bri are two of the most wonderful people in this world who created such a safe and supportive event, I cannot convey how much this adventure meant to me. Between the camping, the fly fishing and just getting to know everyone, my heart is so full.

I truly loved getting to spend time with amazing people. Each of us coming into the experience with our own unique lens and folks being able to share their passion for others, the outdoors, fishing, learning...I had high hopes to enjoy time in the outdoors learning to do something I'd always wanted to spend more time doing. This event far exceeded any expectations I had. Standing in the Madison catching my first fish on the fly, man! I'll never forget it.

I came into the experience knowing no one and having some social anxiety to battle to even get there, but I'm really glad I went. Ya'll did a fantastic job curating a space full of welcoming and kind people. The additional guided instruction improved my casting and general fly fishing knowledge tenfold. Overall, I'm really grateful to have been a part of this and am looking forward to attending future events.

I was initially a bit overwhelmed by the social part and was like… why aren’t we fishing yet! But I embraced getting to know everybody and found that I really enjoyed everyone’s company and that the socializing actually took pressure off me to be go go go. The non fishing parts ended up being some of the most memorable and I left the camp out with many new friends and contacts. I left feeling so good and connected.

I learned SO much but was not intimidated by anyone or anything because everyone was SO NICE and SO PATIENT! Your partnership with local fly fisher-people was amazing because now I have a community that is local! I loved every second. It was ridiculous.

I loved the balance of how we spent our time. Socializing, learning, fishing, connecting. I felt seen and acknowledged both as a human and as a novice fly fisher. Beautiful people and sights for my eyes.

Being at this event was a great experience for me as I am typically out fishing on my own. Having met people who welcomed me into their social circle was amazing!

The best part (besides catching lots of trout) was meeting so many kind people. I hope to be part of the next Outcast Campout!

I'm so grateful for the organizers, the teachers and friends I've made, and everyone who encouraged each other on their journey of learning to meet fish!