Molly Semenik was born and raised in Michigan. She fondly recalls the day when, at the age of fourteen, her father presented her with his prized Orvis bamboo rod. When Semenik moved to Utah in 1979, she brought the rod along and spent the next several years fly fishing in western fresh water. She eventually ventured into saltwater angling.

A career in fly fishing started with her move to Montana in 2000. By the following year, Semenik accomplished three major goals: she was a Federation of Fly Fishers certified fly-casting instructor, she received her Montana guide license, and she founded Tie the Knot Fly Fishing. Tie the Knot includes guided fly fishing on the Yellowstone River and local spring creeks, as well as instruction and fly-fishing destination trips for women. Semenik specializes in introducing women to the sport in a fun, professional, and encouraging way; she believes that “when a woman can tie her own knot, she has started down the path of independence.”

Not willing to simply rely on her earlier accomplishments, Semenik became a Federation of Fly Fishers master fly-casting instructor in 2006, cofounded the Yellowstone Fly Fishing School with Matt Wilhelm in 2006, and two years later became a certified outfitter in the state of Montana. She was elected to the Casting Board of Governors of the Federation of Fly Fishers in 2010.

Semenik and her family live in Livingston, Montana. She has been guiding for eleven years and is busy teaching, sharing, and fishing throughout the country.

Note: this text was written in 2011.