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Rant
1
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I've noticed the past few
years that there are fewer and fewer people wading and fishing
our local streams. At the same time I've seen the float
fishing business explode in popularity. People seem to like
climbing into a boat and letting the guide do all the work. In
the most extreme cases, the clients are picked up at the
airport, driven to the lodge they are staying at, wined and
dined and tucked into bed. In the mornings, they are fed
breakfast, driven to the put in where the guide has rigged
their rod and reel up and even tied a fly on. As soon as
they're settled in the boat, the guide starts rowing. If the
guide is good enough, he or she (yes there are women guides
and some of them are so good they make me feel incompetent)
can put the boat in position so that all the client has to do
is to get the fly into the water ten feet from the boat. Then,
the client just has to set the hook. I've even heard of a
guide back rowing to set the hook when his client
couldn't.
This can be great fun for the clients, who can take pictures
of all the twenty inchers they boat and show them to their
friends but, is it fly fishing? I think not. You can't learn
how to read water effectively from a boat. Further, you don't
have to be even a decent caster to get fish to take your fly.
If you're going to become an accomplished fly fisherman or
woman, you've got to hone your skills by wading and learning
your craft through trial and error.
Now don't get me wrong. I love to float. A trip on the Clark
Fork or Bitteroot is a supreme treat for me. I float four or
five times a year and thoroughly enjoy every trip. But I wade
our local streams far more often than I float them. And, over
the years, I've developed into a pretty fair fisherman. I'm
not advocating that anybody give up floating. I'm suggesting
that we'd all appreciate the float trips we take if we waded
and polished our skills when we can't float. I've heard quite
a few people say that if they can't float they don't want to
fish. When I hear it, I feel sorry for the people who say it.
They won't ever know the satisfaction of stalking a big trout,
making a perfect cast and fighting the fish with your feet
planted precariously on slimy rocks.
I think both types of fishing have merit. I'm mainly making
the point that everybody who fly fishes should pursue both
aspects of their sport. If you're like me you'll cherish the
floats for the amount of water you can cover and the number of
fish you can cast to and you'll cherish your wade trips for
the chance they give you to improve your
skills.
That's
my first rant. let me know what you think. Email me and I'll
know somebody actually read this. I'll also try to put up a
page with your comments on
it.
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