More and more people are looking for great hobbies that adventure. People won’t settle for model ships anymore. They want an adventure that yields real results. Sports like surfing and skydiving make for incredible experiences, but people want their adventure to have a rugged quality, they want it to mean something, be measured. One trend that’s on the up and up around the world that features this exact quality is fly-fishing.
Fishing has always been beloved for the skill that it demands and the delicious food it offers those that can master the skill. Fly-fishing is another form of fishing, but it’s so much else. Between being immersed in the beauty of nature (especially when the sun comes down in splintered laps all about the forrest and the water on the rocks wink back to an algae green rooftop of tree leaves) to that odd sensation when you plunge your feet covered by waders into the cool river, there’s a magic to the sport. There’s also a magic to the sport for anyone who is actually able to land one of those floppy suckers. I’ve gone fly-fishing only a handful of times, but I have yet to reel a fish. I’ve had a bite or two, but a nibble at the hook is a long way from a fish in the hand.
I’ve gone fishing other than fly-fishing and have caught plenty of fish. I’ve even taken my fly rod to my local park and caught something like seven fish in an hour. But I have nothing to be proud of until I pull me in one of those river fish.
The learning that goes into fly-fishing even at an amateur level is immense. Of course there is no better way to learn than by doing, you’re not going to be able to have a proper cast just from reading a book, but you would be doing yourself a disservice if you didn’t bone up on some of the tips and techniques that have accumulated around the sport. It’s important to learn what flies to use and when. That in itself deserves a whole college institution like what they have for caddies in golf. Some people even make their own flies on their off time. The sport can be that infectious.
I may have yet to catch a fish, don’t worry I’ll get there, but all I can say is fly-fishing makes for a great adventure regardless of how you perform. Go with people who are a little more seasoned, and share in their glory until you can celebrate your own.
