My life of fly fishing influences my casting instruction to this day. I’d like to share a bit about my experiences with students of the Academy. My first fly rod was given to me by my father at age 12. Bamboo with an automatic reel, I was confused about the nature of this, and my father picked it up having no experience with fly fishing and hoped I would take to it. I did.
By high school I had upgraded to a fiberglass rod and began exploring trout streams in Minnesota, where I grew up, and the “driftless” area of spring creeks in southern Minnesota, northeast Iowa and western Wisconsin, small streams and reasonably productive. In 1975, I moved to Washington state, raised a family and began a career, but my primary passion was flyfishing, and that was the start of learning about Western rivers and trout.
Having limited expenses but a durable pickup truck with a canopy, gear rods gathered dust while I spent every day off exploring every watershed in Washington State that might hold trout. An occasional side trip for fall/winter salmon/steelhead fishing, but otherwise at the bench in the off season and on the stream from July until November. As most new fly aficionados, I liked the visual feedback that came with taking trout on or near the top. The feedback to casting and presentation skills sharpen with each take. It’s a lesson I pass on to students. To take a fish on top reinforces that you did everything right: you read the water, made an effective cast, presented the fly drag-free to the correct holding water, had the correct pattern and fooled the quarry.
One day on a stream I came across an “elderly” gentleman, perhaps in his 40’s, and watched his casting. It was impressive. I watched as closely as I could and mentally repeated his motions. There was a more elusive lesson here. He waded and cast to water I would have walked past. His presentation was delicate, the line straightening before it gently landed on the water. It seemed from a distance that the fly was floating. The rise was unmistakable, but actually startled me. That hour of observation was a serious awakening, as well as the beginning of a commitment to sitting still and watching at some part of my day when fishing. I advise my students to commit to observation each day you are on the water, with special attention to trout activity, insect activity and water variations. That observation time will contribute as much success as actual fishing!
Now I had an image of what was possible. I had read everything I could find on flyfishing, the historical literature is extensive, even before the Internet. I began a life-long, dedicated refinement of casting technique, and the visual capture of the written explanations I had found in library searches began to make sense. I stopped trying to overpower the rod, developed a feel for timing and rod dynamics.
I would fish every chance I had. I read every outdoor magazine I could find, ransacked the library for books on fly fishing and, when fishing, I would cast for an hour or two, uncertain of the selection of the fly, and, as hindsight now tells me, was oblivious of the importance of presentation.The wrong fly landed in a heap of line on the tailout of a pool produced mostly frustration. I still vividly recall a poor cast from a high bank; the wrong side of the stream, and how the leader magically, inadvertently straightened, achieved an observable drag free drift of a No. 10 yellow Wooly Worm, and a fine rainbow surprised me, rising from below and engulfing my fly. It was a highlight of the day, even the season and a vivid memory still exists of the moment the trout took. Memories of taking fish on a fly are both vivid and long lasting.
I am self taught. That is, I learned about fly fishing through literature. I picked up the casting techniques of the time, with my elbow firmly pressed against my side and understood the virtue of the tight loop and presentation. Along the way, I became a good caster, having benefited from so many experts in their writings, it’s hard to attribute. I confess that I only became an “expert” after many years casting experience, but today pride myself on a tight loop, accuracy and delicate presentation. And, along the way, I became a reasonably good instructor, having introduced the sport to many, and trained them to cast with efficacy.
My approach to instruction is not just about mechanics of the cast, but an introduction to the rich history of fly fishing and the enjoyment of shared experience. I want to know your particular interests, goals and moments of success. As a new student, you are embarking on a lifetime of wonderful time on the water, interrupted with thrilling moments of capturing some of mother nature's most beautiful creatures. If you are already an experienced angler seeking improvement, you know the rewards of fly fishing, and I am dedicated to bringing improvements that will make your experiences even greater! Thanks for letting me be your casting instructor!
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