Donations to the Fly Fishing Academy

This year's program will cost $2,300 per student. That's $1,550 more than the students tuition.

The program has been helping students understand the aquatic world better and we've had three graduates go on to Alaska and Washington Fisheries Agencies and a recent attendee securing work with a fly lodge.
Donating is worth it because the students are learning next to a private 4 acre stocked lake in the forest where they can easily explore multiple streams and estuaries to discover varied benthic macroinvertebrates and fish populations while also discovering the effects of local fish passage barriers and the impacts of humans in a watershed. So many learning opportunities within a 30 minute drive in the forest.

You are invited to visit the academy in order that you may better understand our goals. You'll also find the curriculum is so much more than showing a group of youngsters how to tie a wooly bugger or cast a fly. It's immersive, it teaches life lessons about invasive species, delves into how humans interact with nature and how the student can turn that experience into a life altering path. It's more than how to fish with a fly, it's how to be a better human because of fly fishing and isn't that why we teach the children? Donations have been vital to this program since it's inception in 2002. 100% of your generous donation (minus a very small banking fee) goes directly into providing the academy. We are all unpaid volunteers and there are no administrative costs. Happy Trails and Thank You

If you prefer to mail a check please send it to:

Washington Council – Trout Unlimited – Academy Donation

12819 SE 38^th Street # 462

Bellevue, WA 98006 – 1326

Consider - Lovingly Used - Fly Gear Donations

Monetary contributions are of course always welcome as well as volunteered time and shared expertise but donations of gently used equipment will also make a difference. For example, the Howard Hayden donations recently made a big difference this year when a fantastic array of equipment, rods and reels were given to the deserving students of the 2025 academy.

He was a life long fly fisher who taught fly fishing to hundreds of young people. As a High School teacher and a Scout Leader Howard took great joy in teaching fly casting, tying and rod building to his students. Having made over 100 custom fly rods, many of which he gave away, that skill and enjoyment of our sport was realized by many. An avid gear collector Howard wanted his equipment to be shared with young people that shared his passion for the outdoors, especially fly fishing. Howard died at the age of 87 on April 23, 2023 but he will be remembered by his students, friends and recipients of his generous donation of fly fishing gear given to our academy students.

Donations come in many forms, consider being like Howard Hayden and before you leave for that great fishery in the sky, please consider giving your gear another life by donating it to deserving young fly fishers.