An Overview of the Early Years

At a small liberal arts college in Central Pennsylvania, I tried my best to become learned and educated during four years of undergraduate studies.  In the spring of 1994, my junior year of college, I went fly fishing for the first time with a couple of old friends, after buying waders and boots, a cheap fly rod and reel, a handful of flies that I tucked in my father’s father’s fly box, and then tucked that fly box in my grandfather’s old fly vest. 

I was quickly hooked to the sport, and from that first day until my graduation, I found it easy to rationalize going fishing on any given day, regardless of my class schedule.  There were trout to be caught in numerous streams and rivers just minutes from my college, and attending classes seemed trivial at the time.  I was fortunate enough to have a good number of great friends who shared the same mentality.

After a few fishing trips, I thought that I had a good handle on casting a fly rod and line, and choosing leaders, flies et al.  I caught fish, even wild, stream born fish, and had a blast every day I was on the water.  Looking back now, I fully know as fact that I sucked at the sport during all of those years, had no idea about anything regarding fly fishing, let alone any proper mechanics of casting a fly rod, and most importantly, proper fly presentation.

  

For certain, I enjoyed every day I fished with any number of fishing buddies over those 15 years, and all of the flora and fauna that comes with being near cold water streams and rivers.  Fish were caught by me and my buddies, for sure, but I personally had little idea what I may have done right to catch those fish, and really never took the time to think about what may have worked, and why.

Looking back now, on a scale of 1 to 10, I would rank my fly fishing abilities over those first 15 years of my fly fishing days at a consistent 1.0 or 1.5 out of 10 in every aspect of the sport.



I am no expert fly fisherman now, by any stretch of the imagination, but beginning in 2009, when I met a master fly fisherman who taught me more than I deserved to ever know in all aspects of the sport, I did get better, if by no other means than through osmosis.

A few trips from “the previous 15 years” are worth mentioning, just for fun, which is what I’ve always taken from any day enjoyed on the water.  Fun, that is not measurable in any shape or form, and enjoyment that I’d like to think has added days, months, maybe years onto my lifetime in this world.