I probably never would have learned to fly fish had I not grown up with 2 older brothers and a father who were all avid fly fisherman. If I wanted to have something in common and spend time with them, I had to learn how to fish. I’m glad I did because now it’s a sport I truly enjoy.

First you wait to see a trout rise. Sometimes it’s just a ripple and sometimes they jump out of the water as the river bugs hatch. It’s what they eat. You look to see what kind of fly is hatching off the water, they change all the time. It might be an alder, a caddis, a blue winged olive, or a nymph….you look at the bugs coming up off the water, maybe they’re flying around your head or when it’s a thick hatch they’re landing on your clothes.

After you figure out where they’re jumping and what they’re eating, you pick your spot in the river. Half the challenge is walking through the river to get to the jumping trout. Wading through slippery rocks, and negotiating the heavy currents and sudden drop offs. It’s quite a workout for the legs; I never have to go to the gym on the days that I fish.

Then you start stalking the fish getting closer and closer, sneaking up behind him. Wading out carefully, quietly. Getting close enough to cast within his reach but not so close you scare him away. One more check to see what kind of flies are coming up off the water. They may be different than the flies on shore.

With the right fly on your hook you begin to cast at a 10:00 o’clock and 2:00 o’clock pendulum rhythm not letting the fly land behind or in front until you’re ready to lay it down upstream from the rise, letting the natural river currents drift the fly down just over his spot without letting it sink. Before it sinks you whip it out and cast again. You jiggle the tip of your rod a little playing with it to mimic the natural fly hatching pattern. It’s an art really.

When he bites, he bites hard and fast, you jerk your rod up to hook but I don’t start pulling in right away, I let him nibble on it a little, teasing him, maybe even allowing him to take it down stream a little more, then I plant the hook in further by pulling all the way up and then I start pulling him in closer and closer, slowly and carefully so I don't lose him...

I’m getting better at not getting myself tangled up in my line and net. But it’s hard not to get excited when your reeling in the big one. Its catch and release where I go and I like to use barbless hooks so I don’t hurt them. When I have the trout my net, I hopefully haven’t made him swallow the hook too deep, so it’s easier to pull out. Once out, I hold him in my hand underwater facing upstream, letting him swim a little in hand so he can breathe in some oxygen before letting him go. He swims away and it’s on to the next one. Last week I out fished all the men in my family for the first time. It was a milestone and my Dad was so proud.

It occurred to me writing this why I like fly fishing so much. Being outdoors of course, the peacefulness and the physical sport and competitiveness yes but I really like the hunting aspect, the strategy and challenge behind it all.