Fishing with Friends

There’s been more than a few solo fishing sessions for me this spring. While I tend to be a bit of a lone wolf when it comes to my fly fishing anyway (streamer fishermen have this habit of working a stretch of river, without other anglers on it), it’s been even more solitary it seems to me.

It’s all the same excuses in a busy life. Schedules are often difficult to line up, obligations get in the way, and the pandemic certainly has been tough on trying to get together with friends. There’s been time for some fishing this spring, unlike most times in “normal years”, so I have taken advantage of it when the stars align.

I learn a lot fishing with other anglers. Nearly all of them, I will admit, are better anglers than I am in some way. Perhaps they’re better casters, visualize the river and currents better, or just have more patience, but they seem to excel in this world of fly fishing more than I. My ego is put aside, and it’s great to watch and try to absorb the better traits of my fishing friends.

I watch their casting, approach to certain fish, observations of what’s hatching, and of course fly selections. Some of it goes in to the storage bank, but most of it will be lost, victim of an already packed cranium.

In addition to the fishing and refining of skills, there’s the never-ending supply of jokes and generally good humor. Lots of laughs in other words, and that’s probably why I like fishing with friends …