In fishing, I believe that you don’t teach, you transfer your skills and love of the art of fly fishing.

I can teach technique and methods, I can drill over and over casting methods and discipline. What I can’t teach is the awareness of being on the river and watching the Barn Swallows swoop down to dine on the fresh hatch of Green Drakes popping out of the current. I can’t force someone to learn to be patient enough to wait to cast at a rising fish and just observe the way the fish is sipping.

What I can do is transfer my passion for the minutest details, the magnitude of nature, the gift of where fly fishing takes us, not only geographically but mentally and spiritually. I’m not saying that being on the river will change your life and you will find religion, what I am saying is it can’t hurt.

It is important when you introduce someone to the sport of fly fishing, be sure to mention that catching is only a part of the equation not the total sum of the problem.

Photo credit Taylor Creek Fly Shop