The process...

[lightenup]

Just some thoughts....
Being a born again angler, or a reformed bait fisherman, I sometimes ponder what I was missing as a spin fishing fool.....
The first being the enjoyment of the processes, as I like to call them, involved in fly fishing....I think of the processes I go through when I fish and talk to particular friend who also fly fishes.....
This fellow is always in a rush to get to the water and get the line wet, hurry, hurry, rush, rush, is the mantra when this guy is around....I on the other hand, take my time....
I enjoy putting the rod pieces together, threading the leader, tying the knots(sometimes), watching the water for a while before choosing a fly, making sure my tippet is strong and not frayed, cleaning my line, making sure everything is just right.
These things are relatively new to me, as my excitement as a beginner was too much to overcome, and I also would rush to the water and cast to fish, or not to fish...just to do it.....
Well, as I spent more and more time attempting this great sport, I learned, and learned, and continue to learn, that the processes are an integral part of the act of fly fishing....and have come to SLOW down and take my time to make sure things are right...I also catch more fish.....
Now the fellow I speak of..I will refer to him as the rusher, has been fly fishing for 90% of his youthful life..I believe he is 25 or 26..also catches lots of fish, but I feel misses the point...I can rush much faster with a spinning rod, and probably catch just as many fish, but ,I will miss out on the preparation of preparing, and the rewards that come with it.
I tie flies, I tie my own leaders, I try to move with a purpose, and a general idea of what I would like to accomplish in the time on the water(sometimes this may be many thing besides catching fish)....
I just wonder if the rusher is missing out on something, or I am just a sillier boob than MAC already knows....
Thoughts from the gallery?

 

[Rusty Spinner]

We've learned that you are probably good at foreplay while your friends is probably not.

I find that those that rush in miss all the clues available to them about how the fish are feeding, if they are feeding, where in the water they are feeding and what they are feeding on (or about to feed on). Take your time and keep your focus and you will become a better angler. I recall many years ago jumping in the WBD during a sulphur hatch. The duns were just popping and most fish were still nyphing on bottom, but I saw the odd rise as I was headed to the water. In my rush to tie on a dry fly and get out into the channel, I nearly stepped on a giant brown that was tearing every nymph he could off the rocks at my feet in shallow water. By the time I realized that I had a mid to upper 20s fish right in front of me, he blew out for good. That was a lesson that stuck with me many years since. As a guide these days, I get to see the river without the pressure of having to cast or hook fish. I feel pressure to get my clients into fish, but not the pressure that makes you rush your decisions. That has also made me a better angler when I do take time to fish for myself.

 

[JeffK]

To each their own. To some it is a numbers game, and that's OK if done legally. I fish to relax and therefore usually go fly fishing, and even use a slow bamboo or glass rod to slow down things even further. I am also crazy and love to watch birds, look for Indian artifacts, collect rock samples, see evidence of crumbling historical sites and a whole lot of other side issues. However, I still like to catch fish. I never bought that excuse for getting skunked of "it's better than a day at the office." If I have a rod in my hand I want to hook up, but after a fish or two I'm satisfied.

 

[Flytrap]

Just some thoughts....
Being a born again angler, or a reformed bait fisherman, I sometimes ponder what I was missing as a spin fishing fool..... ?

ive always thought of you as a master baiter

 

[lightenup]

ive always thought of you as a master baiter

I may just drive to my Mom's house and drag you out of that closet!!!!!

 

[Barleywine]

It's funny that you mention enjoying putting the rod pieces together. I insist on that part of the ritual. I have a friend who keeps his rod together in a case that's also designed to accommodate his reel, and he always asks me why I don't "upgrade" to his style of case so I don't have to take the time to put the rod together. But taking that time is the point. I've heard of old time wet-fly guys who could keep their rods hanging with a cast of 3 wets attached and never have to change them for the whole season. That's fine for them; and there's certainly a lot to be said for simplifying some things; but I also like the process that you're referring to. This is why, although I've tried Tenkara fishing and caught fish doing it, it just hasn't caught on for me. Not enough ritual.

 

[lightenup]

It's funny that you mention enjoying putting the rod pieces together. I insist on that part of the ritual. I have a friend who keeps his rod together in a case that's also designed to accommodate his reel, and he always asks me why I don't "upgrade" to his style of case so I don't have to take the time to put the rod together. But taking that time is the point. I've heard of old time wet-fly guys who could keep their rods hanging with a cast of 3 wets attached and never have to change them for the whole season. That's fine for them; and there's certainly a lot to be said for simplifying some things; but I also like the process that you're referring to. This is why, although I've tried Tenkara fishing and caught fish doing it, it just hasn't caught on for me. Not enough ritual.

The "rusher" keeps his assembled in the back of his pick-up.......

 

[mob201]

I guess I agree and disagree. I am not a meticulous preparer and definitely not a gear-head. If, the last time I fished, I butchered my leader down to three or four feet in order to chuck big weighted clousers, I may very well just tie on four feet of tippet out of sheer laziness, then choose a dry fly and go see how it turns over. I have been known to bite a cast of two or three nymphs off my leader, spool them on my fingers, and just kind of cram them into one fly box or another, saving myself the effort of tying two improved clinch knots. My waders have pipe tobacco in all of the pockets and the front of them is decorated with bourbon, dip spit and piss.

But having said that, once I'm actually fishing, there's no rushing me at all. And there I agree with you 100%. Especially if there's nothing hatching, I'll stand and stare at the water for an hour rather than wade in whipping it into a froth with pointless casts. And although a big rise quartering down and 25 feet away will get my heart thumping, I've learned the only way to actually catch that fish is to slow it back down and take my time.