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Photo by Dan Armitage
Walt Disney Walt Fishing Guide Carrie Bronson enjoys her on-the-water “office.” |
Carrie Bronson
Wetting a line at Walt Disney World
“I was my dad’s only son,” explained Carrie Bronson of her passion for fishing, a sport she picked up early from her father while growing up in Ohio. “Anything he was doing, I wanted to do, but it was fishing that really clicked!”
When the family moved to Florida when Bronson was 10, angling was something she could enjoy year-round. After graduating from Eustis High School and pursuing an associate degree in science, Bronson applied for work at central Florida’s largest employer and began a career that is now well into its third decade at Walt Disney World Resort.
“I started out as a fry cook,” she said. “But what I really wanted to do there was become a fishing guide.”
Bronson knew that some two dozen guides were paid to take park guests fishing on several waters within Vacation Kingdom, and that sounded like the perfect job for someone who enjoyed people — and fishing — as much as she does.
“I also knew I had to work my way up through the ranks and hope for a guide opening,” she said.
For the next 13 years, Bronson worked at several park venues, including the Pinocchio Village House, the ranch at Fort Wilderness, in a toll booth for the parking division and at the Grand Prix raceway, to name a few.
“There’s no time for getting bored when you work for Walt Disney World,” she said. “You are free to apply for any job openings that come up, and that allows you to experience so many different types of challenges, work places and people. I just love it.”
While working her way through the theme park’s system, Bronson took every opportunity during days off to hone her fishing skills on local lakes, and became particularly adept at catching the area’s most popular game fish: largemouth bass.
“I knew that was what most park guests want to fish for,” Bronson said. “So that was a big incentive to get good at catching bass.”
Finally, one day while working with the draught horses at the Tri Circle D Ranch at Fort Wilderness, Bronson saw the job posting she was looking for — an opening for a fishing guide.
“It was a very sought-after position, but I knew I had the skills to go for it,” she said, referring to her angling experience as well as plenty of face-to-face contact with park guests she had acquired while working for Walt Disney World.
She was offered the job and received training in boat handling, fishing techniques and the etiquette expected among the fishing guides, which at the time included two other women.
The guides take anglers on two-hour catch-and-release fishing trips on one of three waterways at Walt Disney World Resort: World Showcase Lagoon, Bay Lake and Seven Seas Lagoon. All tackle and bait is provided, fishing licenses are not required, and the fishing trips are offered daily on an advance reservation basis aboard pontoon boats or Nitro bass boats. Trips can be arranged from the early morning, late morning or early afternoon. Bronson works from 6:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. four days a week and at present is the park’s sole female fishing guide.
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Photo by Dan Armitage
Some guests at Walt Disney World don’t even realize angling is an option at the theme park. Those who do can experience some fast fishing action on three waterways open for the sport. |
“I loved it from day one,” said Bronson. “I work with 25 men who are like brothers to me. The best part of the job is sharing the outdoors and the art of fishing with adults and kids of all ages and abilities.
“The biggest challenge guiding here at Walt Disney World is dealing with the weather,” she said. “We can get some strong wind and storms at times, and you have to keep an eye on the sky and make it as safe a trip as possible.
“And you had better know what you are talking about and be confident of you own fishing abilities,” she added. “I have had only a few guests refuse to go out with me over the years. They wonder, ‘What could a woman with blonde hair possibly know about fishing?’”
Bronson fished in the inaugural Women’s Bassmasters tournament series in 2005 and currently competes in the top FLW series. Her specialty is finesse fishing, with soft plastic frogs and worms, a technique that has won her plenty of prizes on the pro tours and the respect of her clients and fellow fishing guides.
More than 13 years after seeing the guide job posted, Bronson still feels like she has the ultimate career at the famous theme park. Among other perks, as the park’s senior fishing guide, she enjoys her pick of days off, which she takes each Friday through Sunday.
“More often than not,” she said of the days away from her job, “I go fishing!” — Dan Armitage