Josh Norlien has fished since he was a kid, but he “really got hooked on fly fishing” quite recently. Now he wants to share his passion with his friends and neighbors; the Norlien family will be opening their new shop, Money Creek Outfitters, in Houston with a grand opening March 15 – the same day as Owl City Cycles will be opening for the spring season.
Norlien wants to make fly fishing feasible and readily available to everyone. The shop, located at 134 South Grant, Suite D, is stocked with all things needed for fly fishing as well as regular fishing. Customers will find a wide array of flies and lures, vests and packs, fishing lines, rods, polarized sunglasses, waders, boots, and assorted apparel. At this time, the shop does not carry bait, but hopes to in the future.
The shop offers float tubes and pumps; kayak rentals will be available from Money Creek Outfitters; Josh is working to expand to offer more flotation rentals too.
Completing the shop offerings in the future will be notecards and greeting cards created by wildlife artist Sandy Hokanson as well as some jewelry.
Money Creek Outfitters offers personalized guide service. The guide service will be “walk and wade” on foot. Interested customers can set up an appointment on the website moneycreekoutfitters.com. Josh plans to guide people in the Rushford, Caledonia and Winona areas. The experience will be adapted to suit the customers preferences regarding terrain, time frame and previous fishing experience. As an aside, Josh noted that he is certified in CPR. In the future, Norlien hopes to later acquire a drift boat to be used on the Root River.
When asked what it was about fly fishing that appeals to him, Josh responded, “I feel fly fishing is the most humane way to fish, if it can be considered humane. The fish generally are hooked simply in the mouth.” Because of that, the fish can be released for other fishermen to catch and enjoy that same excitement.
Josh compared fly fishing to hunting. He enjoys looking for the fish rising and being in the water himself. With the multitude of creeks in the area, there’s always a new creek to explore or a favorite one to return to. Many of the creeks are not in phone service range so you can truly unplug, slow down and relax.
In a recent fly fishing adventure, Josh and his family saw a rooster pheasant and deer; he loves seeing all the wildlife. Josh shared that his daughter caught her first trout on the same stream on which he first had caught his own.
Josh, his wife Angela and their family will be running the shop. Daughter Reece, age 16, will probably be the most involved of the six Norlien offspring at the shop. Other children include Sawyer, age 10; Peyton, age 11; Mylee, age 17; and adult daughters Shelby and Julia.
Josh also works full time at Malteurop, a company that produces malt grain in Winona, as a maintenance supervisor; Angela works for Mayo from their home as a documentation specialist.
In his spare time, Norlien is an avid Minnesota sports fan as well as an avid reader of “newspapers, magazines, 100-year old books!” He plans on bringing some of his fishing magazines and books to the shop to share with others.
As he set up Money Creek Outfitters, Josh used many of the same skills he uses at his other job. This was more fun for him though because he had more control and it was for himself. The biggest challenge Norlien sees in this endeavor is to meet the customers needs. His goal is happy customers who want to return again and again. Josh has been networking with other outfitters; he’s hoping to collaborate to bring a fly casting instructor to his shop in Houston.
Norlien appreciates the support he’s received from the Houston Chamber of Commerce. He pointed out that small towns like Houston have reasonable locations to purchase and rent which made it possible for him to get started. The new Owl Center and the Root River Trail will bring in visitors and potential customers to enjoy fishing as well as camping, biking and hiking.
One business Norlien would like to see in Houston is a restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and coffee. In an understatement Josh commented, “I enjoy socialness; it’d be great to meet up with people in a cafe and talk about fishing!”
Norlien’s dream is to expand his shop and just run the shop full time. For now he invites people to stop in at Money Creek Outfitters to chat about fishing and check out his inventory. “Fishing advice and locations are free!” he declared. The shop will be open Thursdays and Fridays from 11 to 6; Saturdays from 9 to 5 and Sundays from noon to 5. It’s closed Monday through Wednesday. You can find Money Creek Outfitters on Facebook and Instagram as well as their website.
The Norliens are eagerly anticipating opening day on March 15. Coffee from Loons Nest Coffee (formerly Carlson Roasting Co.) will be served as well as other treats. They encourage everyone to stop in, check out what Money Creek Outfitters offers and have some refreshments; Josh and Angela can’t wait to greet you!
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