Sometimes you just have to choose.
It often depends on what mood you're in. Do you want to fish elbow to elbow next to two guys and hope for a 10lb. Brown running out of a reservoir, or do you want solitude and a few tiny natives? I think deep down the pure spirit of fly fishing says to go for the little natives. And if asked on the record, the majority of flyfishermen would say that. Why would you want to sound like a combat loving bait chucker?
I've never been involved in combat fishing, and hope I never will be, but if that's the only game in town, and it's big game, would you do it? Everyone wants to land huge fish at a good rate, but does part of the spirituality get lost in the struggle to find a parking spot?
Some of my favorite memories are fishing the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia for native Brookies. I've had amazing days of relentless dry fly fishing on these tiny streams. The best part of the experience is being in the mountains really doing it the right way. And when I release the first native of the day I always think to myself, "You've got relatives that were here in this creek a hundred years ago, and you're still here now." It really connects you to way back when.
But releasing that 10lb. fish that perhaps spent its first two years swimming around in a hatchery tank doesn't look that bad either. The screaming reel and pounding forearms asking you to just pop the fish off for some relief is a pretty sweet feeling too. So when is it okay to walk down to the river and park your ass right between two other guys just waiting for the tug? I don't know if it is, but the fish in the river are pretty damn appealing. Most true anglers want to be just that, true to the sport. Combat fishing is not that. Those days where you can find solitude and big fish are the best, and some are fortunate enough to have a lot of those days. If you are, don't take it for granted because there's probably some poor slob across the country dodging flies all day just hoping for that one big hook-up, or that other guy in the mountains totally loving it for the 10th straight day, but in the back of his mind is saying, "Damn, I love this, but couldn't they be just a little bigger?"
It often depends on what mood you're in. Do you want to fish elbow to elbow next to two guys and hope for a 10lb. Brown running out of a reservoir, or do you want solitude and a few tiny natives? I think deep down the pure spirit of fly fishing says to go for the little natives. And if asked on the record, the majority of flyfishermen would say that. Why would you want to sound like a combat loving bait chucker?
I've never been involved in combat fishing, and hope I never will be, but if that's the only game in town, and it's big game, would you do it? Everyone wants to land huge fish at a good rate, but does part of the spirituality get lost in the struggle to find a parking spot?
Some of my favorite memories are fishing the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia for native Brookies. I've had amazing days of relentless dry fly fishing on these tiny streams. The best part of the experience is being in the mountains really doing it the right way. And when I release the first native of the day I always think to myself, "You've got relatives that were here in this creek a hundred years ago, and you're still here now." It really connects you to way back when.
But releasing that 10lb. fish that perhaps spent its first two years swimming around in a hatchery tank doesn't look that bad either. The screaming reel and pounding forearms asking you to just pop the fish off for some relief is a pretty sweet feeling too. So when is it okay to walk down to the river and park your ass right between two other guys just waiting for the tug? I don't know if it is, but the fish in the river are pretty damn appealing. Most true anglers want to be just that, true to the sport. Combat fishing is not that. Those days where you can find solitude and big fish are the best, and some are fortunate enough to have a lot of those days. If you are, don't take it for granted because there's probably some poor slob across the country dodging flies all day just hoping for that one big hook-up, or that other guy in the mountains totally loving it for the 10th straight day, but in the back of his mind is saying, "Damn, I love this, but couldn't they be just a little bigger?"
1 comment:
If I had to share the river with so many anglers in close proximity I’d probably take up golf! Whilst I occasionaly enjoy fishing with a buddy or two, it’s really the solitude that floats my boat.
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