Standing outside the capitol, surrounded by an impressive fleet of skiffs and fishing royalty, I realized passerbys on the main drag must be pretty intrigued by the growing group of individuals I was standing amongst. Some were wearing cowboy boots, jeans, and suit jackets, while others had on the standard fishing guide garb: UV protective shirts and pants.
Beyond ideals, one thing superficially unified the aggregation. Damn-near everyone was wearing a hat. It was a stark comparison to the typical drab of suits, ties, dresses, and heels at the capitol. Although Captains for Clean Water (CFCW) was instrumental in the organization of this event, they didn’t necessarily account for everyone in attendance, so the group quickly became referred to as “the hats.” As in “sorry I’m late, the damn hats at the capitol were holding up security” or “did you see the hats at the capitol, they parked boats out on the front lawn!”