Flyosophy

Senior Class Superlatives – as if the high school years weren’t hard enough on an adolescent’s sense of security.  I posted this dusty pic of the Flyosopher wearing his patented (D447,556) ”Douche-Face” not to brag, but to pose a question.

Who truly was the “Most Likely to Succeed?”  The picture shows two students, which is grammatically impossible only one could be the MOST likely to do anything, the other slightly less so.  That is the point of superlatives to qualify or quantify things in relation to similar things.  For those of you who have become obsessive fans of the Flyosopher the answer to the question is simple: Stephanie.  She possessed an intellect and drive that I have rarely seen equalled and never bested;  she is also down-playing her natural smile in the photo.  I’m a smart guy, but, after figuring out how to earn enough to allow me to fish as much as I wanted, I kind of lost all other ambitions, thank God.

Words have meanings.  Webster – the dictionary guy not the Gary Coleman rip-off – defined most of them.  What is more important, however, is what the words you use say about you.  Consider this exchange I had recently with Caroline – a beautiful bartender working terribly hard to turn a loveable loner into a loveable slightly less of a loner.

“Just wait till you meet my friend Matt, he’s the greatest guy, I love him.”  Caroline’s voice was sparkly with charisma – it may have just been her eyes.

“Who was that last person, we were just talking with?”  The Flyosopher struggled to hold up his end of the conversation, a loud crowded room filled with merriment, warmth and cheer was a far cry from the cold wind-swept flats and beaches he normally found himself in the single digit hours of a new day.

Caroline’s mental Rolodex effortlessly recalled the couple. Names, faces, birthdays, pets, favorite drinks and dishes remembered instantly and perfectly.  “Christine and Frank you mean?”

“Ya, wasn’t he the greatest guy ever.”  He could recall little more than what Caroline had said, when she spoke he focused on nothing else. 

“He is.” 

“Well they can’t both be.  One is the greatest and one is slightly less great.”

“Yes they can.  Oh wait, are you afraid that I don’t think you are the greatest guy?”

“No and yes…wait…I am the greatest guy?”

Frank was still in ear-shot and challenged, “No I am.”

Christine, his long-suffering girlfriend, challenged his challenge, “Not when you’ve been drinking tequila.  Then you are an asshole.”

The Flyosopher should have let it go. “All I’m saying is that whenever you “-est” something it means one. ”

Caroline wasn’t swayed.  “You don’t need to be so competitive.”

“Ya you prick.”  Frank, apparently, had been drinking tequila.

“We always manage to have some very unique conversations.”  The Flyosopher blanched.  “I just said ‘very unique.’”

The assembled shrugged.

“Nothing can be very unique…unique is one of a kind there is no “very” one of a kind or uniquest or degree.”

Caroline then shut me off.  I had been drinking Diet Pepsi.  Also, I’m no longer in the running for “Greatest Guy,” but I have a sizable lead for “Most Annoying” and “Most Likely to Get Maced.”

“Some so speak in exaggerations and superlatives that we need to make a large discount from their statements before we can come at their real meaning.”

Tyron Edwards 

Tyron Edwards lived and wrote in the 1840’s.  So what?  Well think about it, back in his day words meant an awful lot more than they do today.  Consider the Bill of Rights, how often has someone said something (offensive, insulting, or simply moronic) and then qualified it with “Freedom of Speech.”  When the 1st Amendment was quilled, dueling was an accepted part of society.  So you had the right to say what you wanted, but you were expected to defend what you said with your honor or life as the situation warranted.  Back then calling someone a “coward” meant one of you had to go.  Today you can call someone every C-word in the lexicon and the worst thing that will happen is you go on to great wealth and fame as a Hard-core rapper.  Ironically you may end up getting shot, which will cement your image.

I often laugh (actually I never laugh I giggle it’s kind of my thing) when people speak (generally against) the 2nd amendment, citing what gun ownership meant back in the 1700’s.  Yet, you never hear someone bring up about the cultural context of the 1st.  Personally, I think dueling would improve society to no end.  Think about it, smashing Perez Hilton’s skull in with a sledgehammer alone would be an improvement.  If nothing else people would be more polite.   

Now that everyone knows that I dream of going on a sledgehammer rampage, might as well finish the article.  I did have a point you know, not a particularly good one – they can’t all be gems. 

Fly fishing literature is littered with exaggeration.  At best this is for harmless dramatic emphasis, at worst it is a lie.  I feel that – like most things – it is a part of the culture.  My only real complaint is that we who are in the sport kind of know when a guy is over-inflating himself, the challenge, the location what have you.  I’m not sure that guys and gals getting into the sport have quite the same understanding.  Many people who would like to try fly fishing are somewhat intimidated by the way we describe the sport.  So let me say something that would likely spark a duel had I said it to Theodore Gordon.

Fly fishing isn’t hard.

Ya Ya needs more drama

“Fly Fishing isn’t hard. But I am.”     

The Flyosopher

Nothing like a little TMI to hammer home a point.  Working at a job you hate to pay the bills is hard.  Raising a kid to the point where she is old enough and competent enough to not need you is hard.  Staying in a relationship when the going gets tough and you remember fondly the nights where you’re greatest concern was finding the Tri-force is hard.  Fly fishing isn’t.  It is fun.

The ugliest piece of crap fly, sloppily cast a far distance from the nearest fish will work out fine a good part of the time.  It’s not the most challenging human endeavor. 

I think our sport could use a little less self-promotion.  Especially if you consider that the “professors” in our college are the guys who give demonstrations, produce videos, or even teach classes.  Self-promotion distances the learned from the learner, and where an experienced angler may take something with a grain of salt or better still be able to fully appreciate the demonstrated level of skill, a rank beginner may merely feel intimidated.  I feel a greater sense of welcoming even if it means slightly less superlatives would be a welcome change, and a great benefit to our sport.

That would be the very bestest thing ever in fly fishing history.

 Ok Flyosophy Fans…next update will be slightly different.  I’m just going to write a short story.  Ever since I was a little kid I always wanted to be a writer and since I have a captive audience I’m going to use it.  I have no idea what it takes to be a writer in terms of skill or knowledge of the business but I figure that writing is probably a good first step.  So we’ll see….

There are a lot of things people take for granted.  Family, health, the freedom to act like a moron are just a few of these things.  I have come to believe that this is a good thing in many ways.  Consider your health, people who take their health for granted are generally out and about doing things they enjoy, whereas people who “appreciate” it tend to wash their hands a lot and worry about Mad Cow disease.  Relationships are another thing that can, are, and should be taken for granted 99% of the time.  For instance my mother loves me, and I love her.  If I honestly thought about the sacrifices she made to ensure the life I had as a child, or the worry she must have felt at different points in my life, to the degree that these things deserved, I would have almost no time to live the life she gave me. 

In case you are wondering, the next time your wife, girlfriend, or significant other complains that you don’t appreciate them, or take them for granted say this:

“I know and it kills me inside that I simply have no ability to describe the infinite.  I am humbled into silence by my love for you.”  If you can pretend to get choked up that will really put you over the top.   Then follow up with this. 

“When you chose to share your life with me, I had no idea how wonderful it would be, and that words could never describe how happy I have become.  I am so sorry to hear that you don’t feel the same, that living everyday for the other isn’t testament enough of our love.  I’m so sorry.”

By this point she is probably in the kitchen baking you a Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf…you are welcome.  The key is you make sure that the “I’m so sorry” is ambiguous – not exactly an apology not exactly an accusation.  Odds are the woman is terribly insecure and that’s why she’s nagging, now she has something to feel insecure about.  If you are unlucky enough to have a mean woman, well her brain was just looking for those words and like the Terminator was completely  single-minded in her mission to achieve them – Mission Accomplished.  If neither of those two option occured,  you have a woman who is most likely sweet, smart, and normal – most likely too damn good for your sorry ass - in which case shame on you for not appreciating her.

(It was brought to my attention that a percentage of the Flyosophy readership may in fact be female…as unlikely as this is I have been shamed into offering some advice on how to handle the delicate situation of when a man complains that he isn’t being appreciated enough.  There are two steps you must follow.  1st Point.  2nd Laugh.  Under no circumstances should you fornicate with this man…the resulting offspring would most likely annoy me if I was ever unfortunate enough to encounter them at a Taco Bell drive up window, and that would be a tragedy.) 

How did we get on this subject? Oh thats right I was building up to an observation about the human condition that irks me…it’s kind of my thing.

Since moving to Cape Cod (a popular tourist and destination fly fishing locale) I have been amazed to witness just how many people get stressed out by fishing.  I had always taken it for granted that fishing was a means of relieving stress, that, however, is simply not true. 

I can see how if a person planned for a trip – especially if they came from a great distance – and the weather, fish, or bait did not co-operate could make one extremely disappointed, even depressed.  Stressed?  Happens, happens a lot in fact.  I’m talking about negative stress, not excitement, or the sudden disappointment that may come when you lose a huge fish.  I’m talking about the lactic acid of the soul, the root cause of most ailments, a force that can drive people to destroy themselves from the inside out. 

I am not entirely sure how fishing could be the root cause of this, but I have a few theories.

The first is the simplest, unrealistic expectations.  The reality of a trip, even a very good trip, often can not match the dream of the trip.  Some take this a dangerous step forward and conciously or not believe that this is somehow their fault.  That if they had a different fly or more skills or had gotten up earlier the trip of a life-time would have been better.  Some even believe, again maybe not with the fore of their mind, that bad weather or some other whim of nature was meant to thwart them.  The old joke of the winning player thanking God for the victory seems rather nice, until you consider its foil, a sulking playing in the opposing uniform saying, “Jesus made me fumble.”

There is also the grim reality that a lot of people are under a great deal of stress most of the year, and simply can’t relax.  So in January a week on July’s calendar gets circled.  Each day when the boss is an ass, the kids are well kids, and he get yelled at for working too much on the same day he has to decide who hates him less the cable company or the phone company, one looks at that week and the red circle around it and thinks: I’ll be happy then.  That week comes and one hasn’t hooked a fish by Tuesday and starts to wonder if he will ever be happy.  The work is mounting up back in the office and this is supposed to be relaxing, but isn’t.  What is wrong???  This was supposed to be the best week of the year and it sucks, everything sucks.  Oooo scary, this is a dismal reality for far too many people. 

Then you have a group that I have very little sympathy for.  Those being the competitive anglers.  I have literally fished with guys who felt a good day was when their buddy caught one fish and they caught two, yet a bad day was when they caught 10 fish and their partner caught 11.  This is pathetic, immature and all too common.  People like this ought to be mocked and avoided.  Or better still try and snag their line and make them think they caught something…classic! 

Finally there is a segment of the population who simply have no idea what is worth getting stressed over.

“Hey Kid, want to know the first rule of driving an ambulance.  ‘Its not your emergency.’”

Surly Ambulance Guy

I was always very nervous when I was a kid, and really no better as a young adult.  I used to worry that awful things would happen to my family – and they did.  I used to worry that awful things would happen in my relationships – and they did.  I used to worry that my dog would die – and it did.  Not exactly the most uplifting story, but the punchline can be.  Worrying about stuff changed nothing…it only robbed me of the opportunity to enjoy things more fully.

I don’t care how tough you are, or how intelligent – the number of things you have direct control over is minor at best.  Granted if you are blessed to be a parent the ability you have to shape the lives of your children is unknowable – provided you aren’t over-stressed by concerns at work or whatnot.  Even in fly fishing, all you can do is present the perfect fly the perfect way…it is up to the fish to take it…or not.  Honestly would you be happier catching a big fish on mere luck, or making a perfect cast and presentation?  I know my answer, but I’ve always put more value on the process than the result.

I don’t put much faith in stress-reduction techniques, nor do I think fishing should be used as a means of reducing stress.  Stress comes not from the world, but from ourselves.  We can either grant it power over us, or we can trust that the world is in more able hands than ours.  At the end of the day, the problems facing us will be little different, but we will be different and far better able to handle them. 

That is a comforting thought. 

The false albacore is a special fish. 

In some ways the false albacore is the polar opposite of the striped bass.  The striper is a fish which can hunt and thrive in virtually any conditions.  The false albacore is a fish that does one thing to perfection.   That thing is speed.  A false albacore feels like polished glass, the only “imperfections” are the two “dents” into which it can tuck its pectoral fins.  In fact a false albacore lacks a swim bladder and due to the high oxygen requirements of its muscles it can never stop swimming.  This is something to be mindful of when targeting them with light gear, unlike stripers an exhausted albie has almost no chance for survival.

Albie fishing is special as well.  In many ways they are perfect for fly rodders.  They generally feed on small bait which is easily imitated with flies, they are not boat shy so long casts are not required,  they feed near the surface and can be targeted with intermediate or even floating lines, and though they are an incredibly fast fish they aren’t particularly strong so they can be brought to hand in a prompt manner. 

This will be a brief overview of what the angler needs to know and be able to do to catch false albacore, yet before we devle into that too deeply I feel I need to get this off my chest.

Successful albie fishing has far more to do with the captain’s skill than the anglers. 

Take a good look at the photo.  Notice how the boats are holding in a relatively flat section of the sea.  This is called the “head” of a rip.  The rip itself is very choppy and can be dangerous if the weather is foul, and naturally the worse the weather the better the fishing. 

The frantic feeding behavior of the albies will draw birds and then boats from all over.  As is the case with an endeavor involving two or more humans, this can often be unpleasant.  Stories of guys anchoring in a rip, trolling through a rip, as well as pilots who simply don’t pay attention or lack the necessary skill to deal with the conflicting forces of wind and current are common.  Add to this that albie fishing is a highly competitive commercial endeavor.   The false albacore has almost no table value – it tastes like crap there are tales of cats refusing it – but there are many guides that specialize on this fishery.  Add money, ego, and a sense of urgency and competition and you can easily imagine how unpleasant this can be.

As a guy who has never driven a power boat, all of this is really not my problem, but I recognize that the lions share of the challenge of albie fishing takes place behind the wheel not nearly so much the angler. 

Albies can be taken from shore…but it is a crap shoot.  If your goal is to catch a false albacore hire a good captain, or better yet make some good friends who own boats.  Every albie I have ever caught was on a boat captained by my friend Mark Dysinger.  I firmly believe that every albacore I will ever catch will be with the same captain.  I trust him to find the fish, get the boat into the right position, deal with the nonsense, and most importantly to know when enough is enough and seek out less stressful fishing opportunities.

All I really had to do is pick a fly, cast it, and work a retrieve.

False Albacore have incredible vision due to their enormous eyes.  I find that imitative flies work best, however, when the bait is especially thick a very flashy or all-white fly is generally a better choice.  Surf candies, Mushmouth patterns, Clousers, and Deceivers will all work.  My favorite pattern is a woefully simple zonker sized to the bait.  I wrap the shank with Krystal Flash and use a thin zonker – ginger is my favorite color (I perfer Maryanne on Giligan’s Island though.) 

The most difficult part of fishing for false albacore is line management.  Due to the fast pace of the fishing, the captain may feel it best to reposition the boat, if some other boaters are acting in an unsafe manner this many need to happen quickly.  Boats with a shallow casting deck – ideal in calmer waters – will present a challenge to the angler…especially angler who is fond of stripping off a great deal of line and making long casts.  Coils will bounce around, become tangled, or worse blow out of the boat and be damaged by the prop.  I feel it is the responsibility of the angler to be ready to move promptly.  The easiest way to do this is to limit your casting distances to what is manageable based on the situation.

The second aspect of casting is knowing where you can place a cast.  The common sense of knowing that you can’t backcast where the rod holders, captain, or fellow anglers are tends to get a bit confused when a huge pod of albies starts busting on the surface.  To maximize your opportunities, learn to fish your backcasts, cast regardless of wind direction, and make change of direction casts.  Know what you can and can not do, and make sure your captain knows.  Also know what room other anglers will need and stay out of their casting lanes.  Few things are worse than having the false albacore blow up around the boat and you are untangling your line because your partner caught your backcast. 

As is the case with most fishing, the retrieve often makes all the difference between success and failure.  I find the key lies in understanding a few things about false albacore feeding behavior.  I have observed two types of surface activity.  Since I have a masterful command of the English language I have come up with terms which are beyond reproach…streaking and beaking.  Reproach away.

Streaking – the albies are swimming at the surface at a more or less constant depth.  The give away at a distance is you will see the rounded surface of their backs occassionally break the surface.  When displaying this behavior the albies are generally moving fairly quickly.  The best place to cast is well away from the splashes to a point where you believe they may be headed (the location of the splash is most likely the place they are least likely to be by the time your fly is cast.)  The best lines are floaters – for the ease of pick up and repositioning the fly – and intermediates which get to fly a foot or two below the surface.  The most useful retrieves are generally as fast as possible.  Unless you are the Flash, there is no way you can strip a fly too quickly for an albie to grab it.  Dead drifts and twitching retrieves also work, sometimes better so resist the temptation to get caught up in the excitement.  If the fast retrieve isn’t working, try another.  The good news is setting the hook is almost a non-issue, most of the time the albies will hook themselves.

Beaking – The second type of surface activity I’ve observed is when the albies seem to come straight up to the surface and their mouths (sometimes their whole bodies) break the surface.  With no swim bladder,  false albacore can change depth rapidly.  I find that this type of activity lends itself to a deeper presentation, and even though the activity is at the surface I catch far more fish when my fly is deep.  It takes a lot of discipline to count off a 30 second sink when birds are screaming and fish are busting, but if you have made a few casts with no takes this may be your best bet.

False Albacore fishing is a great experience, not my personal favorite but many Northeast anglers have caught chronic cases of Albie fever.  Just remember to pack your sense of humor when you target the biggest little fish in the ocean.

Common Imitator Patterns

If posed the question:  Do you tie flies to catch fish, or do you fish to test out your flies, I would be hard-pressed to answer – honestly it is a stupid question – but I feel that the most truthful answer is I fish to test flies.  I love watching a fly in the water, the way it gently sways with a subtle current or pulses against a strong flow, the chaotic dart when stripped, or the gentle glide atop the surface film.  Watching a fly you tied perform the way you imagined it would gives you the Hannibal feeling.  No, not the feeling of riding an elephant across the Alps, but the satisfaction of knowing a plan has come together. 

This naturally ties into my favorite aspect of sight fishing.  Consider the following if you will:

You are on a sandy flat; the sky is perfectly blue the warm sun is directly above you.  The tide has just begun to rise and you have positioned yourself near a slight point on the flat, your knees get wet only because of a slight gentle chop to the water, there is a distinct but slight drop that follows the contour of this bar. About 40’ directly in front of you, there is a swarm of stripers.  They are following the contour of the sand in a roughly oval shape about half the size of a football field.  One part of this circuit brings the fish in easy casting range to you. 

Sounds pretty nice…and it is pretty nice.  In many ways this is the best situation you can reasonably hope for, there are fish, there are conditions that allow you to spot them, and you don’t have to move to get to them.  This is key.  No matter how many “American Ninja” movies you watched, not matter how many times you crossed the rice paper and left no trace, if you are moving the fish will more than likely detect you.  They may not spook, they may even rush up to you.  (It is a common occurrence on the beaches of New England for a child to get scared because a large fish is following him.  Stripers routinely come to beaches where people are swimming because the activity will stir up the bottom and present a feeding opportunity.) Keep in mind that just because you didn’t see a fish spook, doesn’t mean they didn’t.

Hmmm…so what about the fish I see on the flats that rush up and then refuse my fly at the last second.  This is common source of frustration for sight-fishermen, but doubtful that it is unique to them.  How many flies fished in waters where the angler can’t always see the fish get the exact same treatment?  This idea more than anything has been my fascination the bulk of this season.  Are the failures and frustrations of sight fishing quite possibly the best teachers for all fishing?  Or are the behaviors of fish in one environment completely different from the behaviors of the same fish in another? Or – as is so often the case – is the reality somewhere in the creamy middle of these extremes?

Before we get into that, however, we should consider a few basic principles of flats fishing.

First – the fish are on the flats to feed.  This may seem simple enough but it is often an over looked point.  The flats are generally warmer, the water is shallow, and the sun is out – when you figure that stripers are a nocturnal fish that generally prefers cold, deeper waters this becomes a highly significant point.  A fish on the flats is there to do business; this is a good thing for an angler.

Second – Stripers are (or at least seem to be) spooked far more by what is above them than by what is below them.  I personally believe that this is a response to the fact that birds are likely the primary predators of young fish.  It could also be a simple observation due to nothing more than the fact that most of the stupid things we fishermen do to spook a fish occur above them.  Still it is worth considering that dragging an anchor seems to spook less fish than a single false cast over them.

Third – In order to catch a fish you must either present a fly in a manner that corresponds with how the fish is behaving, or you must present a fly that changes the manner in which the striper is behaving. 

Say what?   

On a few more frustrating days on the flats this year I did something smart – nothing.  I anchored my yak, and just observed the fish.  Most of the fish would never veer from the course they were swimming (though the course was rarely straight,) if a baitfish, crab, shrimp or whatever happened to be in their path they ate it.  They almost never slowed down to do this; their speed was constant, with the occasional quick dart or flash to finish something off.  When fishing with an imitator fly (generally something fairly small, sparse, and colored similar to the bottom) the presentation will slow the striper, move the fish to the fly, and more often than not the fish will stop or even follow the fly before either taking it or refusing it.  The only exception to this is when conditions allowed for the angler to present the fly to a fish cruising directly at him…only then would the fish take (or not take) the fly the same way the observed fish behaved, with a quick take rather than slowing down.

What did this mean?  Nothing more than the fish were breaking behavior; the presentation caused the fish to stop doing what it was doing and respond with a different behavior.  May seem minor but what it meant was the imitator patterns weren’t doing what they were supposed to – or better stated the presentation had to be so exact that the majority of the opportunities would be missed.

Not-so Common Attractor Flats Flies

So for a few days I fished nothing but attractor patterns.  This is considered a big no-no, but so is frying mashed potatoes in lard.

 “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.”

 George Bernard Shaw

 I would only add this to Mr. Shaw’s observation.  Doing the same thing as everyone else will only get you as far as everyone has gotten.  Thats right the Flyosopher doesn’t play that…and guess what I make S’mores with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups – I’m a dangerous rebel who plays by his own rules, and occassionally I break my own rules.  I stick it to DA MAN, even when I am said MAN…Good thing Shaw is dead, that would have killed him. ( Never liked him anyway I’m glad your dead. )

You never learn if you don’t try.  Attractors are something of a faux pas on the flat, but they were somewhat effective.  Only somewhat though, I caught far less fish than the imitators did, however, I also managed to learn something.  

 The interesting point was when the attractor fly was being retrieved and a striper would break off to inspect the fly it became apparent to me that I could read the fish’s body language and know almost instantly if they would take or not.  Fish that rushed to the fly quickly generally turned off or followed it until my ugly mug spooked them.  Fish that hugged the bottom and moved with haste but not speed would take the fly (speeding the retrieve encouraged this, but stopping spooked the fish – stripers are not like largemouths.) 

Then I decided to try something slightly different. 

Attractor not Attractive

The flounder fly is a keeled tube fly, so it will sit on the bottom.  Given its cumbersome size I could cast it well enough, but timing was an issue.  I decided to fish it like an ambush predator, in that I would cast it out, let it settle to the bottom and then wait for a fish to swim within range.  Once the fish was within a few feet of the fly, I would twitch it hard to upset as much sand as possible and then strip it with a two-handed retrieve.  The results were encouraging if not great, with a very high percentage of the fish taking the fly.  What interested me was that the fly seemed to take the fish out of its behavior, which moved the fish to the fly, and then promptly put the fish back into its feeding routine – with a quick strike (or if the fly was to be ignored it was quick as well.) 

 When the fly was fished “normally” with a cast and retrieve the fish responded to it similar to any other attractor…in that most would follow it with very few striking and a few spooking.  It was clearly the combination of the presentation and the fly that produced what I now consider the ideal fishing response.

To define this response: when a fly can move fish towards it like an attractor, but fish take it like an imitator.  An attractor on the flat gets the fish’s attention.  An imitator – when fished with an exacting presentation gets taken by a fish effortlessly.  A fly/presentation that has the ability to capture the attention of the fish, and then elicits a natural feeding response is the best of both worlds.  Now the fly is only one part of this the presentation is at least as important perhaps more so.  I tried the flounder ambush presentation with both sand eel and crab imitations and found they worked very well. The rustling sand served as the attention getter, and then the fish would take the fly without the often deal-breaking vigorous inspection.

Now a question to close…can this principle (if it is true) be applied to other fly fishing venues.  Imagine a spinner fly that could stand out from a thousand naturals, yet be taken as a natural, or an anchovy that gets singled out from a school of a million yet doesn’t raise an unnatural red flag to the fish.  Would that not be a better fly than even an exact imitation?  Is there any need for attractors at all?  Could all the attraction come from a presentation technique?  Or is this observation just something that I noticed this season on a few flats on a small area of a single species’ environment, a pattern which may never repeat again?  I can’t answer these questions.

 Yet…

“The measure of a man is not in how he deals with success, but in how he handles failure.”

Paul Stanton – The Flyosopher’s High School principal

Don’t worry I’m actually planning on writing a bit about sight fishing, but first let’s consider failure.  I think that if society has made one glaring mistake it is in how it regards failure.  Many of us believe failure is something to be ashamed of, to protect children from, or to avoid at all costs.  I look at failure a bit differently; I see it as the only way to measure progress.

Sight fishing is really nothing more than the most obvious way to fail at fly fishing.  So naturally it is a great way to learn.

A lot has been written about the challenges inherent to sight fishing.  Like every good fly fishing genre, some of it is true, some of it is exaggeration, and a lot of it is total crap.  For example, the Flyosopher found himself chuckling while reading “The Definitive Guide to Striper fishing” when the author encouraged his readers to learn the technique of slowing – preferably stopping – one’s heart before casting to a fish on the flat.  Seriously?  Who the hell am I supposed to be The Master from that ill fated 80’s show were the premises each week was this old bastard ninja would get hurt or have to go through a motion sensor or some crap and would save himself by stopping his heart.  Last time I checked stopping your heart was a bad thing, I mean to avoid bleeding to death maybe it would come in handy, but to catch a fish I prefer methods that encourage the angler to avoid clinical death.  It wasn’t sarcasm, the author went to great lengths to describe exactly why you should do this – thankfully he didn’t describe the how of it we probably would have lost a few of the less “gifted” members of our fellowship. Yes, I did read the entire book after that just to pick up other pearls of wisdom – there were many it was awesome, not so much with the fishing know-how, but hey reading is primarily for entertainment.    

Many anglers seek out the pure white flats of the tropics, the slightly less white flats of my home Cape Cod, or even the still darker bottomed waters carp inhabit.  Sight fishing is often considered the single greatest challenge a fly angler can face.  The fisherman needs to:

Find the fish

Cast accurately

Cast the required distance

Understand the environment

Know the structure of the flat

Know the currents

Know the dominant forage

Present the fly in a natural way at the correct depth

Use stealth to avoid spooking the fish

Set the hook at the right moment   

With that much going on it is a wonder anyone ever catches a fish.

But let’s think about this.  Re-read that list…now read it again.

Quick tell me two fly fishing situations where you don’t have to do all that…give up?  Okay one…

 In my humble opinion, the challenges of flats fishing are no different than the challenges of bluegill fishing, or trout fishing.  They may be slightly harder given wind and the wariness of the species of fish and the scope of the environment – if the axiom is true that 90% of the fish are in 10% of the water then a guy blindly casting in a small pond has a better chance of catching a fish than a guy standing on the shore of the Pacific Ocean – but the challenges aren’t different.  I personally believe that the mystique of the flats stems from something rather simple…very few people have them as their “home waters.” 

 If your home water is a trout stream, you can fish virtually any trout stream on any Continent – local knowledge will help of course but you know the drill.  Roll over rocks, check spider-webs, fish the edges and in all likelihood you’ll do fine.  The flats are no different – well except there are no rocks to roll over.  Also I find with very few exceptions, many people who fish a new area do so with the intention of catching fish, not of learning.  So the mystery of the flats persists. 

 There is however one key difference.  When a fish you can’t see refuses your fly at the last minute, you have no idea it happened, when a 40” striper rushes up to your fly and then turns away, you will never forget it.  Most anglers see this and think…fish on the flats are smarter than fish in channels, rips, or creeks.  I merely wonder how often have I fished an area and caught nothing, chalking it up to the fish not being there when it fact there were hundreds of them…ignoring my fly.

 So first off, what exactly is a sight-fishing flat?  For fly fishing purposes, a flat is an area where the depth is fairly shallow and generally constant.  That is not to say there are no drop offs or channels because there are but they are subtle, a depth change of 4” could be considered major.  The other quality of a flat is that the bottom color is generally consistent.  I was going to write bottom material, but the material really doesn’t matter so long as it allows for the spotting of fish.  In my section of the world, lightly colored sand is best.  Finally, in order to spot fish you need either a fairly sunny day or an overcast day with no wind since even a slight chop will make spotting fish extremely difficult.  Finally do yourself a favor and get the best pair of sunglasses you can.  If you try on a pair of 10 dollar polarized glasses and then a pair of 50 and finally a pair of 200 and honestly you can’t see the difference…get your eyes checked.  The best pair I have found (that fit my enormous face) is Smith Optic’s “Chamber” with the green lenses.  I find the green lenses are superior to both amber and copper on a bright day (which is when you should be flats fishing.)  After LASIK surgery, the most expensive fly fishing gear I have is my eyes.

 So now that you are on the flat what should you do?  There are two schools of thought.  The first is to find a “good” area – generally one where there is a school of bait, or a structural change that the fish will relate to.  Position yourself in relation to the sun for maximum spotting ability.  Ready your line in the stripping basket and be ready to cast at a moments notice. 

 OR

 Paddle around like a moron and spook fish every so often and say things like, “Wow that was a big one.” 

Your buddy will ask, “Where?”

And you can respond, “Heading way out there into the ocean, damn he was a monster sure wish I wasn’t paddling around like an idiot spooking fish like that, but hey I have to be me.”

Now reading this you may think that I advocate the former…I do not.  Unlike most sight-fishing guru’s (I friggin’ hate that word makes me want to become a violence guru) who approach this like a religion, I do not believe there is a right or a wrong way to fish, but merely choices every angler will make.  If you stay in one spot – no matter how great it is – there will be days when you see no fish, this could be due to conditions, that the bait is slightly denser elsewhere, or occasionally because the fish simply didn’t come up on the flat.  If you travel about looking for fish, you will spook them – though I do recommend a kayak, for whatever reason the fish spook less when you are in a yak rather than when you are wading.  This difference is often enough to mean that you will see the fish you spook from the yak, and you may not see the fish you spook while wading…the shorter you are the truer this is.

For myself, patience is not my best quality so I roam, and when I see fish I either get out of my yak or cast to them from it.  Fishing with your feet in the sand is easier to achieve the best presentation, while fishing from the kayak allows you to get closer and see more fish. 

I would never fish flats without a kayak.  People do it everyday but people also get married, become vegans, and watch Bill Maher everyday…it is just not for me.  The kayak allows you to access any point on a flat, gives you better stealth, allows you to easily transport multiple rigged rods and as much or as little gear as your little heart desires. 

A few times a year some moron gets stranded and begs me to save his pathetic life and paddle him to a sand bar. 

DON’T DO THIS!!!

No seriously think about it, unless you have some solid rescue training more likely than not you will just get yourself in trouble.  The simple fact of the matter is most kayak-fishermen are horrible kayakers, trying a rescue is a recipe for disaster.  Before you approach a person in distress evaluate the situation, most of these dramatic situations can be solved with a little common sense by a person who isn’t in a panic.  Look for paths back to shallow water, advise the person to lose the waders and swim a narrow channel, or if they are in a fog allow them to follow you out (kayakers are naturally smarter than idiots without kayaks so you will have a compass and possibly a GPS right? Of course you will.) If you see a solution the odds are the person you have come upon is in a panic no matter how calm they may seem.  This mean you are dealing with a profoundly dangerous person.

Think about your best friend.  Would he/she ever push you off a cliff?  The answer ought to be no.  If they were clinging to the side of a cliff and could fall to their death at any minute, would they grab your leg?  Exactly…panicing people are dangerous.  Often the best thing to do is to yell at them and tell them what to do – from a safe distance.  If that is impossible the next best thing is to contact the professionals.  This Christmas Eve the Flyosopher made the mistake of aiding an elderly woman who decided that she didn’t get what she wanted for Christmas and jumped off the wharf into the harbor.  She was tiny and frail…I am well-muscled, young, and juggernautish…the crazy bitch damn near drown me.  

Naturally this advice is extremely hard to follow, so I’ll boil it down to this…don’t be an idiot.

Up next week, flies and presentations for the flats…

To a certain degree, I feel most recreational fishermen who become fly fishermen do so for a heightened challenge, and they are often willing to sacrifice effectiveness in order to foster this challenge.  This applies to all fly fishermen with the possible exception of guys who fish streams for trout. 

I can smell the hate so let me reiterate and pontificate for your rage to sate (one day I’ll have to write and entire Flyosophy in rhyme.) 

Stream-based trout fishing is most effectively performed with a fly rod.  There are challenges of course but a fly fisherman in that environment has a profound advantage over a conventional gear angler.  The fly rod offers greater control during a drift.  A fly line can be mended to achieve a drag-free presentation.  Flies can be tied to exactly mimic the forage which may change by the hour.  The guy with a spin rod is entirely out-classed. 

Now compare that to say a lake-based pike angler.  There the spin rod offers considerable advantages over the fly rod.  Lures can be worked further, deeper, faster, slower, and with the greater control a shorter stouter rod offers.  The lures themselves can be much larger than a fly fisherman could hope to cast and a solid plastic or wooden lure with produce a far more powerful vibrations in the water.  In this fishery, the fly rodder is at a disadvantage, and needs to overcome this handicap with savvy and skill.

Why bring this up?  Because recently I was speaking with a fly fisherman who had it in his head that sight fishing a flat was the only real way to fly fish in saltwater – he had spent a lot of time thinking about this.  His beliefs centered on the idea that fly fishing traditionally was stream-based so one needed a location where the water moved fairly consistently in one direction – like a stream.  Flies were to be small and drifted with the current to a fish that you knew was there.  I feigned interest and let him continue.  Fast sinking lines, distant casts, large gaudy flies, even varied stripping retrieves were not traditional and thus not fly fishing, or as he phrased it fishing with a fly rod is not always fly fishing. 

I had a moment of clarity.  I realized something that I feel will serve me well in the remaining days of my life.  No nothing about fishing, unfortunately, but something about debate and human thought patterns.  The very best way to win an argument with a _______________ is to be a more thorough _______________.  Yes, I realize that a mark of maturity would be to not argue with people and just let it go in one ear and out the other as my grandmother would say.  But where is the fun in that?  See the reason this works is people are perpared to argue with their natural foil.  A conservative, for instance, is comfortable arguing with a liberal, but what about a more conservative conservative?  I believe I owe this bit of wisdom to the radio program “Coast to Coast with George Noory.”  It is a wicked late night radio show where the host has guests and callers speak about UFO’s, religious conspiracies, black helicopters, and medical miracles – the perfect thing to listen to while driving to a fishing spot.  What I learned – in addition to Bigfoot being an alien – is that when a skeptic calls in they can never win an argument, it is simply impossible to use logic or any other technique to sway these people.  However, when a caller makes an even more outrageous claim, with less proof and greater speculation, the guests are generally unable to make their point.  The very best way to win an argument with a crackpot is to be a more through crackpot.

So in the case before me, the angler was arguing as an elitist with a purist bent, so the most effective argument would be one that a more elite elitist would make.  Being a “Murph for All Seasons” I knew I was up to the job.

I gave him a wry smile, like one would give a child.  A voiced my opinion that the tradition of fly fishing came from men of means who unlike their peasant contemporaries did not need to catch a fish in order to sustain themselves or feed their presumably filthy children.  Since sporting, reading and whoring were the only recreations in “ye olden days,” these gentlemen sought out a more advanced and thus more fulfilling means of performing what the common man did, thus to demonstrate their superior intellects.  That’s why fly fishing came to be, and the reason blasting ducks sitting on the pond after tossing them bread is a social gaffe.  The best books don’t have pictures, and why a trophy wife improves one’s social status where a trip to the brothel followed by one to the clinic does not.  Being effective is the mark of a troglodyte, achieving with style is the hallmark of a gentleman.

I concluded by illustrating that I am an active participant in this noble pursuit, pushing against the boundaries of what is possible for my own entertainment, while he like the millions of mud-drenched nameless plebeians before him is merely doing what has already been proven to work, and in his small-mindedness can not fathom why another would do differently.  I tell him its ok, and I forgive him.

There was no counter-argument.  I was disappointed.

Like most good jokes, this exchange hides a kernel of truth.  Fly fishermen generally are seeking challenges, and most other fishermen are trying to help them…which naturally lessens the challenge which is what you were looking for in the first place.  The simple fact of the matter is if you aren’t fishing with a net, electrode, or explosive then effectiveness is not your primary motivator.  You are fishing for some other reason than to merely acquire a fish.  This is good.     

“Accept challenges, so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory.” 

General George S. Patton

 There is an exhilaration of victory when a challenge is achieved; there is also a more lasting feeling a sense of personal growth.  The knowledge that you can do more today than you could the day before can be very uplifting, kind of like being a little kid. 

Most of us probably started catching fish at some point with a push-button rod rigged with a bobber and baited with a worm.  We caught bluegills and thought it was awesome.  Then some of us wondered if we could catch them on something other than worms and experimented with bread, corn, crickets, snails, leeches, and those nasty Mary Jane bars the geezer down the street handed out for Halloween.  Others may have given up on bluegill entirely and sought out bass, perch or whatever.  Still others may have determined that the local pond held fish, what about the creek, river, lake, or that big blue smear on three quarters of the teacher’s desk globe.  I vast majority of us probably skipped down a number of these paths.

Yet, I think many of us, as we age, fall into the trap of wanting to be either an expert or at least comfortable.  We learn a stretch of river so intimately that the unknown section around the bend remains unknown.  We tie what becomes our signature fly so often and so well that there really is no reason to try something new, and so we don’t.  Then we become like the guy in the opening story.  No longer are we merely disinterested in doing something a different way, we start to see it as being somehow wrong.  Whether it is frowning at an indicator, refusing to believe a 90′ fly line should be cast 90′, or voicing disgust at a fly which imitates a well-fed muskrat.

See the greatest challenge in fly fishing is not a bonefish on the flats, a Marlin from the abyss, or a wild brown trout on a 32.  The greatest challenge in fly fishing is the continual improvement of the fly fisherman.        

There is a profound difference between what makes a something a good challenge, and what makes a task just needlessly harder than it has to be.  For instance hooking and landing a fish on a dull hook is more challenging than with a sharp one…it is also stupid, a moronic handicap. Challenges are different angler to angler.  Distance casting could be a challenge to a guy who can cast 30′ but it can also be a challenge for a guy who can easily cast 100′.  Some guys pride themselves on having the perfect fly for every situation, others like to see how well they can get by with just a handful of patterns, and some even just one.  I honestly don’t think it matters, but you will learn in one day fishing in a manner which is unfamiliar to you than you will in 30 years of doing the same routine.

The fish themselves can even be considered a part of the challenge – odd as that may seem.

There is an expression about writing – that sometimes the most important things for a person to write are the worst things to publish.  That may well be true; this whole article may be a horrible mistake.  There is, however, another belief that people read to know they aren’t alone.  I’m not sure I hold to that belief, but I do know that words have meanings, often larger than the person who wrote them will ever understand.  When I started this column I thought that it would be little more than a forum for funny stories generally at my expense.  Somewhere along the line to me “Flyosophy” stopped being a tongue-in-cheek joke and started to mean something more.  Reading this article you will gain no insights into fly fishing, and it may prove to be a mistake putting it up, but today at least, I feel it is important that I do so.   

All fishermen, fly fishermen especially, understand the life cycles of insects and of fish.  We use common terms: the spawn, a spinner fall, a hatch – all mundane words to describe miracles.

Occasionally…generally only when the fishing is either very good or very bad, we take a moment to recognize what is truly happening all around us for what it is – a miracle.  Whether you believe the universe is a collection of random sub-atomic collisions or holds the very fingerprints of God – life – all life - is miraculous.  If you never realized this then you simply haven’t been paying attention.

Of course, this is only one perspective, there are others.  For example, some people look at the birth of a child as the single greatest miraculous achievement of which a human is capable.  Others look at the same event as a horrible failure of contraception and promptly dump the mistake in the nearest trash receptacle.  Some people think a baby born nearly 3 months early should be given a name, loved, and provided with the very best medical care available…that this child is a person and every effort should be made for him or her to live and achieve their potential.  Others feel that the same babies still unborn ought to have their tiny skulls opened with a pair of surgical scissors. In a society like ours, devoid of any consistent sense of responsibility or uniform moral decency who can say which perspective is right?  Everyone is entitled to their opinion, God bless America. 

I stood at the gravesite of my niece and weeks later my nephew.  There were some flowers, their were some candles, a number of friends and relations trying to say what no one knows to say, a poster with a picture of the baby, and a tiny white coffin – smaller than the box my last pair of sandals came in.  I was afraid to look at it, and wanted to punch the person who had made it.  That is how a mind protects itself.  Thinking about what was inside was too much, so I thought about hurting the person who made their livelihood from building such things, a stupid lie to block an honest truth. 

I’m no stranger to loss, but this was different.  Normally when a member of your life is lost you can remember the times you were with them, stories you heard of them, or if it is a relative of a friend that you did not know personally you can lend an ear to the memories that they share of them.  With a baby there are no memories.  You don’t feel the loss of the person, you don’t know the person, but you feel the loss more profoundly.  Remembering a friend, you feel sadness, you may feel regret, but you also feel a sense of love – which is still very much there.  With these babies, I found myself mourning ideas.  I imagined where I’d take the twins fishing, or toss them around at the beach.  I even thought about the photos I’d be able to take of them holding sunfish with ear to ear smiles, and of course teaching the obligatory “Pull-my-finger” prank. I would go to their house, rough house with them before bedtime and then leave and let their parents deal with the fallout.  I was remembering and mourning things that had never even happened.  Heck, I’m not even an uncle given that they were my cousin’s kids.  Nothing I was feeling was real.  Yet, looking at a baby coffin, what image could hold a starker realism than that?

Then there was the helplessness.  There is nothing like the struggles of a one-pound child to make even the largest, strongest man feel absolutely helpless. I’m not sure there is anything worse than not being able to help the person you most want to help.   I felt it, and looking at my brother’s knuckles I know he did as well.  Still, I believe it was only the merest fraction of what their father felt.  A man who would have done anything, but there simply wasn’t a damn thing he could have done.    

It was then that I had the single most inappropriate thought of my life.  Standing at the grave of a child, I thought about the Maury Povich Show.  Specifically, the countless men who danced and cheered when they learned they weren’t fathers or the dozens who lamented when they were.  Again I felt the desire to hurt someone, perhaps more appropriately now.  Justice doesn’t exist.  Here is a guy who wanted nothing more than to have his family: to work and struggle for them, to literally sacrifice his life for them, not in a single dramatic moment, but every single minute of every single day.  I admire that, more than anything.  But no, that’s not part of the plan.

Maybe it is a stupid plan.

Of all the platitudes and clichés you hear yourself say, the ones about what was “meant to be” irk me the most.  So these children weren’t meant to be, but frigging Osama Bin Laden was…or I was for that matter. Or you were.  Think about that for a minute…if these kids weren’t meant to be…than you were.   

That’s a pretty big “if” though.  A two-letter word that can define a person’s entire out look on the universe. 

Personally, I want to believe it.  I would love to say definitively that I know the world and the children of the world rest in wiser more able hands than mine.  When things happen, it is for a reason.  Good can grow from and ultimately defeat evil, and the sufferings we all must endure today are for happier tomorrows.  Yet, if I said that now it would be only words, perhaps wishes, but not something that I know or believe without doubt.  Faith is a gift.  To some it is freely offered, to others hard won.  I just know that at present it is something I lack, and too precious and important to claim otherwise.  I’m not sure how a person who lacks faith earns it, but I’m pretty sure lying about it isn’t the way to go.  Probably the natural downside to living inside your head and thinking over-much, thoughts drown out what the heart may already know, or want to. 

Again, it is a matter of perspective.  A perspective can change your entire life.  My cousin and her husband believe strongly in the metaphor of the butterfly.  That death is not an end to life, but a transition from one form to another.  Allyson and Owen are now more beautiful than ever, happy and at peace.  Hopefully, they are looking out for the people who would have loved the chance to look out for them. They have no pain, only we do and we are big enough to handle it.  I hope that is true.  If they do look down on us, then maybe a goofy uncle who goes fishing too much does have some purpose. 

2009 has been a bad year for me, a lot of personal turmoil not the least of which caused by the simple fact that my little family keeps getting littler.  As my long-suffering mother likes to phrase it, “All my grandkids are dogs.”  I took my “Sabbatical” to deal with many of these issues, and for the mundane reason that for the better part of the last couple months I was homeless – well between houses – brushing my teeth in a public bathhouse and sleeping on the beach, it happens.  It was actually kind of fun.  Well the biting gnats and greenhead flies made things more interesting, but at least I can officially claim the title of “Beach Bum.” 

One perspective could be that this is the start of a downward trend.  Opportunities that had been open are now closed; friends and family I had known and loved are gone.  I miss my old life, I miss my dog, I miss the happier guy I used to be.  Yet, nothing needs to change for a perspective to.  This could just as easily be seen as the start of a new era.  A lot has been learned in this year, and things which were blurry are now sharply in focus.  Things taken for granted are now given there proper due.  Not to share too much, but as a young kid I got married because I wanted to have a family, to attempt to regain the happy life I had known as a kid with my parents and siblings.  Now older, balder, sun burnt, and something of a loner, ironically, I know I am closer to that end than I was.

I know this wasn’t a typical “Flyosophy,” but I needed to write something to Allyson and Owen as a means of thanking them.  I still do not believe that things happen for some meaning.  I have come to believe that meanings come from events.  I do not think that life hides some secret meaning; I do not think “The Meaning of Life” is a question that we should ask.  Rather it is the question asked of us, and we are called to answer.  When the dark times come, it is no use to ask “Why did this happen?”  I think a wise person will ask, “How will I respond to this?”  A simple question does not change the world, but one that gives a measure of control, a measure of responsibility, a measure of meaning, a perspective you can use. 

So what is my response?   

I allow myself to feel sad for what was lost.  I stand by my family to support them and to be supported.  I choose to see miracles for what they are, and to live with the joy that we are surrounded by them.

Just a note to say that the Flyosopher will be on Sabbatical for a few weeks…a lot of irons in the fire at once: some joyful, some not so much.  But rest assured the mix of wisdom and sarcasm you have come to love will be back in a few short weeks.

In the mean time your homework is to go fishing…now get to it.

“Cruel leaders are replaced only to have new leaders turn cruel!”

Ernesto “Che” Guevara

Che Guevara is one of my favorite characters from history.  Basically he was a revolutionary,  that was pretty much his job.  He participated in revolutions in Guatemala, Cuba, the Congo,  and Bolivia.  Men of his ilk often claim to do what they do out of love of justice, equality, or even for their fellow man – a noble sentiment – but someone who travels the world looking for brutal wars to fight in is also the definition a mercenary.  Guevara earned a reputation for being excessively brutal, even with his own men. 

The one thing that a student of history needs to accept, however, is that the facts of a man’s life or the events that took place during it have value, but what has greater value and longevity is how they are perceived.  Guevara is considered literally a Saint by some, to others he is considered a butcher – both groups are right.  Che’s likeness from the photo above has become synonymous with counterculture, which is what tickles me.  The man was vehemently opposed to Capitalism and materialism, he gave his life and the lives of others for these beliefs, yet his likeness is sold world-wide as a part of the consumer culture.  Parodies of this iconic photograph have been made of Homer Simpson, Kramer, Al Bundy, and with the recent surge of the Democrat Party (casting Conservatism as “counterculture”) Ronald Reagan.  People who admire him, people who dislike him, and people who have no clue who he is buy these items.  Now that’s a full circle.

I chose Che Guevara as the “leader” because of his controversial nature – FDR was second runner-up, Mao a distant third.  Whether hated or loved most leaders – political, religious, or even Head coaches – tend to evoke powerful responses.  If a losing team in the NFL changes its head coach, the fans will have new hope (at least hope enough to buy tickets and swag) if another losing team hires that very same coach its fans will have hope and talk about how he is a better fit for their system.  Naturally, more often than not, no one person can make that much difference…however, hope itself can. 

This is fine and harmless for sports, can be a little troubling in other avenues.  People followed Ghandi, people followed Martin Luther King Jr., but they also followed Jim Jones and that Heaven’s Gate reject (have a hard time calling those mass suicides “tragedies” but I’m a callous bastard.)  Some of the greatest leaders in history – “greatest” meaning nothing more than the most successful at leading others – have also been its worst monsters.  I almost feel that this is an inevitability.  If people look to a leader to help them with small things, and he succeeds, then they will look to him for larger and larger things.  The leader is paid in power, the cost is personal freedom.  Far too many people regard this as a welcome trade.  There are verified accounts of political prisoners in Russia mourning the death of Stalin, they were more troubled at the thought of having no powerful leader to guide them than the leader who incarcerated them.

Personally my ideal leader is a man like General George Washington, who takes on power reluctantly, uses it sparingly, and gives it up gleefully.

“Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.”

George Washington

Hopefully this has gotten your ire up – or at least your hackles.  I figured nothing like a semi-political discussion to get everyone on edge.  This was to perpare you, get you on the edge of your seats, for the segway into the cauldron of passionate fury which is the fly fishing topic of leaders.  Please refrain from using cuss words in the comments, you may offend the other person who reads this.

What do you mean you don’t have a firey passion for leaders?  You don’t just absent-mindedly use the store-bought tapered #x crap do you?  You ought to have some deeply held beliefs about this, because the choice of leader has more to do with fly fishing success than the choice of fly.  Hmmm that’s a large statement seems to need a but more drama.

“…the choice of leader has more to do with fly fishing success than the choice of fly.”

The Flyosopher

How many times have you heard or read the sentiment that the key to success lies in the “presentation?”  Nearly everyone agrees with this, but have you ever actually thought about what that means?  The “presentation” is the umbrella term to describe how the fish perceives the fly.  What it looks like, how it acts in or above the water, where it is in the water column, how it entered the water, how it drifts, you get the idea.  Now consider your gear in relation to these questions which piece(s) of gear answers which question…with the possible exception of how the fly itself looks – the leader factors prominently in every aspect of the presentation.  Yet how many times have you changed a fly to try something different without considering the leader?

It’s okay, the leader will forgive you but don’t ever do that again.

There are a number of formulas out there for how to create the perfect leader.  Don’t believe them.  The ideal leader will be the one that allows you to fish the situation.  A still water dry fly situation may require a 12′ or even 18′ long leader.  Fishing a deep fast rip may call for a leader less than 6 inches. 

The material the leader is comprised of should match the situation as well.  Leaders can be made of monofilament or flurocarbon, furled from thread, or spliced out of braid.  All have their place in fly fishing, the key is in knowing what to use where and when.  Like fluro sinks so its not the best for a dry fly….or is it.  An emerger tied with a foam wingcase and fished with a fluro leader stays exactly where you want it to.

Though some leaders can be a straight piece of material most are tapered.  The taper allows the energy of the cast to transfer from the line to the leader and finally the fly.  Large flies need more energy to turn over so less of a taper is required (in some cases no taper works best for very bulky flies.)  A tiny midge fly on the other hand, needs a long continuous taper to gently disappate the energy to allow the fly to land gently on the surface of the water.

Tapered leaders have three main sections, but each section could be comprised of a number of transitions.

Where the leader meets the fly line is called the “butt.”  This is generally the heaviest portion of the leader.  It may seem contradictory at first but often the longer and thinner the leader is the heavier the butt needs to be to transfer the energy and to simply be thick enough to allow for enough steps as the leader tapers down.  Furled and Braided leaders usually comprise both the butt and the next section – the body – of the leader.

The body is the mid-section of the leader.  Depending on the overall length and thickness of the leader this could be as few as one or nine or more separate pieces of material.  The primary purpose of the body is to give the leader its length and taper to match the appropriately sized tippet.

The terminal part of the leader which is tied to the fly is called the “tippet.”  Since it is the closest section to the fish it is generally the thinnest part, but that is not always the case.  When fishing for a toothy predator like a bluefish or pike, the tippet is often made of wire or heavy flurocarbon.  When you buy a leader the “X” designation refers to the size of the tippet.  As a general rule for trout fishing I primarily buy 3x leaders and then add 5x tippet material, and then 7x tippet material to that if I’m using very small dries.  The weight of the tippet will affect how the fly drifts and acts in the water, and needs to be balanced to the fly.  If the tippet is too heavy the fly wont act right, if it is too light the fly may fail to turn-over on the cast.

Many beginners are drawn to furled and braided leaders because they simplify what is likely the most confusing aspect of the sport.  Either of these leaders require the angler to merely add an appropriate tippet.  This is fine, but like everything in fly fishing there are other options.  Knotted leaders take the most time and knots to create, but also allow for a wide range of customization in the field.

The leader will probably never have a magazine dedicated to it, and guys will never want to peek into leader wallets like they do fly boxes.  A change of leader, however, can drastically alter how a fly is fishing, and that is often more important than which fly is fishing.  So give it some thought, I know it is not the most interesting subject matter, but understanding leaders will make you a more complete angler.