Sometimes you find acquaintances that have that “extra” something special that makes them stand out as fishermen. Sometimes this acquaintance is a friend and this means you will share many experiences and above all you will have the opportunity to observe him in action. It is difficult to pin point exactly what it is that makes them true fishermen.
What it is not, is just one single thing.
After years of fishing together we have managed to work the river with hardly a second glance at each other or need to question anything. We flow as one, although this could be that his expertise has rubbed off on me. Depending on the mood we are in and what the river tells us we may fish together or go our separate ways.
There have been times when we stand together in the middle of the river, cast simultaneously and have a trout strike at the same time. At other times we both use the exact same lure, fish in the same spots and do just about everything alike – just about because he keeps on catching, while I…
On only one or two occasions I have out fished him, to his great frustration – but this is very rare indeed.
I have observed him for over twenty years now and am a better fisherman for it. Here are a few of the things I have noticed that makes him a consistently good fisherman (good as in he never returns empty handed).
- Attitude – he has this saying that a fisherman who doesn’t get wet is not a fisherman. And he always gets wet. We will cross the river when we need to; we will wade; we will fish from the side, from under a tree, from the bank, from the middle, from a rock or from a bridge.
- Perseverance – there have been times when the trout is caught when daylight has all but gone. No matter what, he will fish.
- Love of the sport – something happens to us as we prepare for a fishing trip. And this something becomes even more obvious as we approach the river until it becomes patently obvious as we fish. We are transformed. Life as we know it is left behind and we become one with the sport.
- Knowledge. He knows about trout but still has the ability to be surprised by a trouts reactions. He can read the river incredibly well – and rivers are always different and changing.
- Fishing Gear. Once as we chatted under a tree during the mid day sun, he left his hand dangling in the water. He actually tickled a trout to sleep and then he flipped it out. His gear is always well kept – the reel in superb condition, his lures, his line, his rod – all in top shape. But he can fish with a pole and a shoe lace if necessary.
- Luck. At least that is what he calls it. But after years of observation I now know that it isn’t luck; or at least not too much luck.
Getting into the “fishing zone”.
He, this fisherman friend of mine, has the uncanny ability to focus his whole being while fishing. This not a question of concentration but of changing his whole self, his body, his mind and thoughts, his breathing, his walk, his attitude.
He stops looking and begins to observe. He stops his inner voice and hears nature around him. He notices the light and the shadows. Sometimes I am sure he hears the trout and even talks them out.
He is not hypnotized or absent. He just goes into the zone at will.
Those few occasions that I out fished him were when I was in the zone. The difference is that he does this at will, while I am still learning how to do it.
A long time ago I asked him about it and he just said – “whatever you do, do it with your heart and soul”.
And I guess that, in a nut shell, is it.
A Tale With Some Fishing Tips
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Posted 2 years ago #
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