By Justin Mickens
After a 2-month hiatus, where I had Pneumonia, a friend broke his leg, and I started an Etsy online store, I am back with another article for the month. Over the past two months I have been mulling over what to write about. You see, writing is not my forte. I have never enjoyed it, and probably never will. It is a chore for me to get the words to flow and connect. I have probably 50 different half-finished articles that just didn’t make sense and I abandoned to start over. I’ve noticed though that, the more I write, the better I am becoming.
Why am I telling you all this? To prove a point. I get told several times a week, how someone wishes they could fish or tie as good as us. For one, I don’t actually think I am that great. I tangle up while casting. I catch trees. I even crowd the eye of the hook while tying sometimes. The reason my partners and I seem to know what we are doing is experience. Time at the vice and time on the water. No, we didn’t magically start pulling fish out. Nobody waved a magic wand and we could roll cast 40 feet in under a Rhododendron. We spent hours upon hours on the stream, watching how the fish behave, practicing our casting, and enjoying just being out on the stream.
Reading and watching videos are a great resource, and can teach you a lot, when combined with experience. For instance, you wouldn’t try to learn to swim by just reading a book, or watching a video. You would want to get in the water and apply that knowledge to the actual task of swimming. Same goes for fly fishing and fly tying. There are no substitutions for real life experiences.
Challenge yourself every chance you have. Sit down at the vice and tie 6 of the same fly. Cast into those hard to access spots. Study the water. Watch during your drift to see how the different cross currents effect your fly’s placement in the water. The only way to improve your skill is to practice what you want to improve.
Fly fishing usually isn’t as complicated as most people make it out to be. Remember, we all tangle up. We all hook trees. We all hang on the bottom. We all have our rough times on the water. The difference is, the more you practice, the less problems you will have.
Until next time Tight Lines and Stable Rocks!
Justin Mickens is Co-Owner and Manager of Appalachian Outfitters Fly Shop in Murphy, NC.
