It's no surprise that I love fly fishing. I love everything about it: the planning, the packing, being on the water, hunting, catching, and landing fish, the camaraderie, and the stories at the end of the day. It is hard to imagine how you could make the experience any better, except by fly fishing with my wife or a good friend.
Thomas Fuller said, “If you have one true friend, you have more than your share.”
On this day, I looked forward to fishing with my true friend, Bob Miller. Bob and I worked together for years at the same company. He was the one who introduced me to fly fishing when I retired and has been my fishing mentor ever since. Bob was also my sponsor for membership in the Queen City Anglers Guild. And I will be forever grateful for that. However, in contrast, while I was able to easily slide into the retirement lifestyle, Bob couldn’t. Instead, he decided to start a second career at Orvis in their Cincinnati retail store. That experience has unquestionably made Bob the most knowledgeable angler I know, and every time I am with him, I learn something new about the equipment and the sport.
The last time I fished with Bob, it was for peacock bass in the Florida Everglades. We had a great time, and he caught his first peacock. Today, I was looking forward to having another enjoyable time with Bob hunting big trout on the Big Horn River in Montana.
Bob is incredibly knowledgeable on so many varied topics. For example, he is an expert on guns, can talk about cars and planes, and is our resident “gearhead” regarding fishing equipment. The only problem I have when we fish together is that we tend to talk as much as we fish. On the flip side, this can be a good problem to have if you want a day of fun.
This day, our guide, Mike, decided we should fish nymph droppers off a balloon indicator. The technique may sound laughable, novel, clown-like, or maybe even redneck. However, balloon indicators are more sensitive to bites. Balloons are lighter, which allows them to move around more easily on the water. They are more supple, allowing you to better feel if your flies are bumping along the river bottom or being nibbled by a fish.
I was a little bummed at first because I had brought my 8 1/2 foot mid-flex 5 wt. Orvis TLS Power Matrix rod to the party. My wife bought me the rod when I retired, which has a lot of sentimental value. It was outfitted with a gold Mid-Arbor reel that Bob had spun a new Helios trout line on. I was planning to use it to throw dry flies on this trip and was hoping this would be the day. Catching a massive trout on a dry with my very first rod was the dream. Instead, I used Mike’s 6 wt. to pitch the balloon and double nymph rig.
As soon as we started, we began getting hookups on our bottom nymphs. Bang, bang, bang, both Bob and I were catching big Rainbows and the occasional Brown trout. Our conversations ranged from reminiscing about the old days at work when you put in half days, there are 24 hours in a day, and you could pick the half you wanted to work, to wisdom about private sector companies getting involved in work causes, to which fly could catch the most fish. You might think that all this random chit-chatting would frustrate a guide. However, Mike often chimed in with his thoughts on life, and we had a grand conversation.
After fishing with dry flies for two days, casting a balloon rig took a little practice. There are several moving parts, and it is easy to get fouled up. I was in the stern. We were fishing the port side, and I worried I might make a mistake when casting over the center of the boat, which would result in hitting Mike upside the head. Fortunately, that never happened. But I did foul my line quite a few times. Bob and I pitched the balloons roughly 20 - 30 feet off the beam into the bubble line and got some nice long drifts. The mending practice I had from the previous two days on the Big Horn was really helpful. The game boiled down to watching the balloon tik-tik-tik and waiting for the telltale strike.
Our constant yammering often took our eyes off the balloon, and we undoubtedly missed a few strikes. Mike was kind enough to point them out for us. But we set more than we missed, and the day was very productive overall.
Henry David Thoreau once said, “Many men go fishing all their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.” There is a tremendous amount of truth in that statement.
Why do we fish? Certainly, one reason is the thrill of the hunt. But I think that is a superficial answer. When we fish, we get an opportunity to commune with nature, to feel the sunshine, and to reflect on the sights and sounds around us. And despite fishing being described by some as escapism, for many of us, fishing is a way to reconnect with the simpler things in life—a way to quiet the mind and feed the soul, a way to deepen friendships.
I fish as much to build better relationships as to catch fish. Fishing allows you to have meaningful conversations and get to know someone on a deeper level. Every time I fish with Bob, I feel our friendship grows. We tease each other and are each other’s vocal cheerleaders when one of us yells, “Fish on.” And, of course, we take the obligatory picture of each other to document our trophy catches.
The good news was after lunch, Mike let us fish dry flies. My Orvis rod eagerly came out, and I got to cast it. The whisper a fly line makes as it slides effortlessly through the guides is emotionally invigorating and full of promise. Seeing the fly land in the bubble line of a current, making upstream mends to slow the drift, is gratifying when done correctly. As the guides always say - “foam is home.” Get it in the foam, and the odds of a take will increase dramatically.
Looking back, the only thing I can think of better than fishing with Bob, is fishing with my wife or son. Unfortunately, I don’t get to do either very often. And, given Bob’s dedication to making the Cincinnati Orvis store a success, I don’t get to fish with him as often as I would like. That means every occasion is a gift to be enjoyed.
I’ll end this story the way I started it. No surprise, I love fly fishing, however fishing with a friend takes the experience to a whole different level. In quieter moments, when I reflect on my age and contemplate how I want to spend the time I have left, I know the number of years Bob and I will have to fish together is finite. I also know I will look forward to each and every one. My life is sweeter because of fishing with family and friends. Tight lines until the next time, Bob!
Nice story. Really gets to the heart of why we fish.