a _ By KEN DAVIDSON
” What’ s all this stuff
about fly fishing that's .
attracting more and -
‘more people every year
‘and:-why all the in-
. terest?: Along those _
lines. then,.. why do
people - climb moun- .
_tains or “why do they
» take ap hang gliding or
- stamp collecting or
anything else?

is " prigiarily. cae ~ mental
fairyland: Ifs‘an illusive and -
indefineable two part dream.
The first" part of the dream
ru call the “mechanical
part”.'A true disciple of fly
fishing” can’ spend endless
| hours ‘lost in - meditative
_ images of himself or ‘herself
directing a-virtual symphony

. with that magic wand called -

a fly rod. ©

A hand crafted’ “Bh foot
split.cane rod matched to a
superb line and reel, a 9 foot
transparent . leader. tapering.
down to a 3 pound tippet,
decorated on the end with a
feathered. masterpiece, and
you. have. all the mechanical
-imagery needed for ‘happy

ages of: ‘contemplation. Close -=

- “your-eyes, you.can see that
line-drifting back. .and forth,
ever longer,’ -reaching,
reaching, til -your imstinct
says, “Now”, and: you stop
the forward cast and let the
fly settle on the exact
“predetermined spot.

An orchestration of eye,
hand, rod and line precisely ©

co-ordinated to put that

. fabulous fake right where |
you want it. Man, this is —

living.

Add to this, the other half
of the dream, the part [ll
call the “ideal setting,” and
your fairyland is complete.
Everyone has a_ different
ideal setting, consisting of a

always boiling down to
essentially the same thing in
that the ideal is personal,
private, beautiful and
singularly yours.

Would you like to share
MY ideal ... it’s located at a
river's mouth emptying into
a high country lake. See, it's

remot =amvery big river The -20- EXP...
ing “sun ‘is fast’ “going

flown and” thes

i's watm, there's a. light
breeze, I can smell clover, I
can hear birds and the gentle
gurgle of the water. I'm

a alone in a peaceful world
except fora good friend

farther along the re.
: “There! ... did you see that
_ there's another ... it

! rise

looks like . . yes ... there’s a
hatch on ... -. hallelujah. My
7 number 12 brown sedge

looks about right. I tie it on

and work out line. A hte

| more now, a little more .
gotta sct it down right at the
base of that far bank at the
edge of the dark pool”.
BANG ... the surface cx-
plodes and my whole world
funnels into my arm, the

'. rod, the line and the three
pound silvered rainbow
dancing on its tail just for
_me. For a time, we become
one.

variety of elements but J

Next time,
make

I think Tu
it a five pounder.

Anyhow, this is the stuff that

@ fly fisherman’s dreams are
made of. . .

If you'd like to add am-
munition to your dream
_arsenal, why not take-up the
increasingly ‘popular hobby ~
of fly tying. At one time I

was. under the impression ©

that you had to. become an
authority on the subject of

bugs (entomology) and that .

it would entail endless hours

of study before you could

ever hope to. tie a fly. Not
true. Probably the best way
to get started is to join one of ©
the. many community -
education fly tying courses
usually offered in the spring
and fall or enquire from one
of the fishing clubs: they
frequently put on courses for.

ers as well as for
advanced tiers.

I didn’t go this route but
chose instead to teach
~ myself,—using ‘some of the
many books on the subject. I
don’t recommend this

method because it’s too slow
and i in most cases the books
don’t stress or explain the
areas in which the beginner |
is initially inept. Not only
that, but many books feature
flies not relative to B.C.

; ‘The cast of getting started
is. really . very little... For
around twenty dollars you
can set yourself up with
enough paraphenalia to keep
you going for months.
Actually,, a lot of the

4

gadgetry can easily be
homemade. If there is
sufficient interest out there,
I would consider devoting a
portion of this column to a
beginners fly tying course.
Let's hear from you.

Still on the subject of tying
flies, I must mention how
much pleasure it has given
me. Some time ago I set up a
small table in one corner of
my studio, rigged. for tying
and for holding all the little
containers of feathers, fur,
hooks and thread essential to.
the art.

‘Since then I have spent
countless long winter

. evenings and rainy days
. Sitting at my.table com-

pletely lost in the fascinating
and creative world of fly
tying. Coachmen, sedges,
doc spratleys, -muddler
minnows, grey duns, grizzly
kings, stone fly nymphs, ~
wooly ‘worms and many
others graduaHy take on

“meaning-and come-to-_life-in--

‘the world’s, top tiers “is a

‘ woman named Helen Shaw.
I read somewhere that ‘some -

of her flies sell for over one
hundred dollars.
right, :
DOLLARS. These flies
however, are purchased. by
coHectors - (probably — rich
ones at that) and end up in
display cases rather than in
the water.

Whatever your reason, if
you should take up fly tying,
or if you prefer to skip that

and simply fly fish with store —

bought flies, your rewards

will be far reaching ~...

moments of real serenity, a
new. awareness of ‘nature’s
treasures, an expanding
knowledge and an ability to
dream wonderful dreams
“just by turning them on.

aes

QUESTION: I'm thinking of
buying a small boat jast.for
fresh water fishing. Which is

_ the vise. Once you get

started, all the little winged
creatures in your garden,
and the ones that crawl and
slither, Become a
knowledgeable part of your
new world.

Those creatures that most
of us have ignored or held in
disdain take on a certain
unique dignity. Eventually
you'll say, “Bugs are neat”.

On the mercinary side,
there are those who make
money from fly tying. One of

.

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°REPRINTS FROM SLIDES |
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You'll have to consider how
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QUESTION: On the subject
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prefer, the hip wader or the
chest wader?

ANSWER: No , doubt about
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That’s”
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