Click the photo or use the arrows to see more images from a morning of fishing with Casting for Recovery.
WEST GLACIER — A year and two days after undergoing breast cancer surgery, Peg Simon waded into the Middle Fork of the Flathead River along with 13 of her surviving sisters.
The women began casting their fly rods for the first time.
Three more cancer treatments awaited Simon in the coming weeks back in Missoula, where she lives with her husband. But on this Sunday morning, hospitals and infusions and the battle were far from her mind.
Today was about fishing.
For three days, Simon and 13 other women from across western Montana who are battling or have battled cancer came together for the first-ever Casting For Recovery retreat in this part of the state.
There are currently 84 annual retreats across the country, including one in eastern Montana. After years of work by volunteers trying to establish the program locally, Glacier Country is now the newest confluence for breast cancer survivors.
“I’ve been hearing testimonials of women who have been to these retreats. A lot of them have really affected me,” program coordinator Heidi Sue Puryer said. “I believe in this program. One woman said that weekend was the first time she didn’t think about her diagnosis.”
The local Casting For Recovery held its inaugural retreat at the Glacier Outdoor Center in West Glacier from Sept. 9-11. Thanks to donations and fundraisers organized by local volunteers, the whole weekend was offered free of charge.
The three days centered around teaching women at various stages of breast cancer a therapeutic new hobby — fly fishing.
“One of the values of this program is meeting people who have survived and have said ‘I don’t know if I can do this journey,’ but they find out they can and they share with others the way they have survived,” Simon, 68, said before casting her first fly.
Led by 12 volunteers throughout the weekend, the women learned the intricacies of fly fishing while focusing on wellness and hope on the road to recovery. The healing power of the outdoors is an added bonus.
“There’s something special about fly fishing,” retreat leader Erin Sprunger said. “For women with breast cancer or who have been a survivor, I think it’s very helpful and healthy for them to concentrate on something else for a whole weekend.”
Casting For Recovery was founded in 1996 in Vermont by a professional fly fisherman and breast reconstructive surgeon. The foundation of the program is bringing together fly fishing, counseling, medical information and communal support. According to breastcancer.org, roughly one in eight women in the U.S. will develop invasive breast cancer in their lifetime. Last year there were more than 2.5 million survivors in the country, according to the same data.
Landis Vance, one of those survivors who lives in Kalispell, took the first steps to establish Casting For Recovery in western Montana. Vance experienced a retreat in Maryland years ago and wanted to get one started after moving here. Vance organized fundraising, planning and retreat teams, and the movement was built.
Last weekend, the results were on display as the women finally pulled on the waders.
Standing on the shore Sunday morning, Puryer tried to summarize the weekend.
“You don’t know the magic until you’ve seen it,” she said.