Fly Fishing. Not for the feint of heart.

[rfb700]

I was sitting at a local pub having a beer and conversing with my friends about our summer hobbies. One friend is a climber and another likes white water kayaking. They were regaling me with their tales of daring adventures. The Kayaker was talking about being caught in a hydraulic on the Petawawa River and the mountain climber was trying to top that with a tale of being caught in a blizzard on Denali. They said it was nice that I had such a calm, safe sedentary hobby like fly fishing.

And I have to admit, I was a tiny bit offended by that. True, my fly fishing brushes with disaster might not have the cache of a mountaineering or white water adventure, but fly fishing is hardly the safe and boring activity they made it out to be.

I have been swept off my feet in rapids and carried on a fun ride down river frantically trying to keep my rod safely above water and out of harms way.

I’ve had the bank crumble out from under me and fallen onto the rocks below.

I have been stuck in sucking mud up to my thighs in a stream and thought that I would remain there until they found my bleached skeleton standing upright in my waders.

I have fallen through the middle of a log jam and nearly lost my delicate parts by impaling them on a branch.

I have been backed down a creek by a moose in the middle of Algonquin Provincial Park and have gotten lost in said park for about a day.

And on a never to be forgotten day, attacked by a mother owl whose nest I had gotten too close to. I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve had the begezus scared out of me by beavers, otters, water snakes and snapping turtles.

So keep your death defying adventures on the peaks and in the rivers. Fly fishing fulfills the excitement quota of my life quite satisfactorily.

 

[gpwhitejr]

Apparently, in the UK fishing is the sport with the highest body count:

"Fishing causes the more deaths in the UK each year than any other major sport, according to Sporting Life 360. As fishing has been around longer than any modern sport, it has also killed the most people over time."

Which sport has the most deaths in the UK?

 

[pnc]

Sounds a lot like when I was in PA. If you ever fish the salt you can expand the list.

..... pc

 

[JDR]

Ignorant people make ignorant statements. Fish on! I stated my response poorly. People ignorant of any endeavor will make ignorant statements about what they don't understand. I didn't mean to offend you by calling your friends ignorant. They just don't know about fly fishing. Now, fish on!

 

[Rip Tide]

We've always thought of fishing the surf as"extreme fly fishing"
You're getting pounded out there.
The great white sharks and the 600lb seals only make it more interesting

 

[bigjim5589]

I've never been interested in any hobby that includes death defying feats. Other than an occasional slip in the mud or wet waders because I went in too deep, and close encounters with snakes or yellow jackets, that's as thrilling as it's gotten, other than the actual fishing.

30 years driving a tractor trailer has been dangerous enough for me, so fly fishing has allowed me to get away from all that! :biggrin:

 

[scotty macfly]

I wonder if Evel Knievel fly fished?

 

[karstopo]

I wonder if Evel Knievel fly fished?

He was a hunting and fishing guide before all the stunt riding.

 

[bonefish41]

From age 13 to 76...first time age 13, was nitetime on the Little Manistee in those Hodgeman/Red Ball waders stepped in the hole, over the top, no belt then, one hand on rod other on birch branch let go of the rod, grabbed another branch and down the bank holding on to the branches down to where I could take off the waders...wet wading after that found rod next morning fortunately from the hole to where it was shallow was only about 15 feet...then in my 40s ocean flat Big Wood Cay Andros quick stop and nice belly flop off the casting deck did not lose the fish but some abrasions from the limestone bottom though...in my 70s I'm out of the skiff somewhere west of Key West trying to close on a tailing Permit when I spot a 4 to 5 foot Bull shark closing on me, head on about 70 feet out...he was not meandering like a Lemon ...his pectorals were down and coming straight for me with minor corrections like a guided missile making course corrections...I started backing up to the skiff...hit the water once with rod he veered but returned to course but I had my butt on the gunnel and he flared at the boat and a poke with the guide's pole...the picture was taken just as I picked the Bull up and colleague said why are you backing up?

 

[rusty 54]

I'm finding that excitement is over-rated.

 

[brownbass]

I wonder if Evel Knievel fly fished?

He was a hunting and fishing guide before all the stunt riding.

I can just imagine the day when Evil K came to the decision that he had to find an easier way to make a living.

 

[Ard]

I'd have to say that the large part of the time I've spent fishing things were pretty well under control and safe. Reading Rob's original post reminded me of witnessing a fellow who got stuck in suck mud above the old Milesburg Dam back in 1999 I think it was. He was planning on low holing me but was unfamiliar with the area. While I was on a good gravel bottom he slid off the cut bank right into the silt deposits. He never called for help from me and I did not offer any, after perhaps a 15 minute struggle he managed to haul himself out onto the grassy spot he had came from and then he left.

I also was in a situation years ago fishing a tidal water on Kodiak Island where a fellow who was planning on joining me (uninvited) got himself caught up in a very strong river current that promised to wash him into the lagoon. I had to leave my rod on shore and go after him, this occurred in a remote area and I had no idea he was even there before he tried crossing the river to get to where I was at. He was grateful for my help but I've never received any notification of inclusion in his will or anything of that nature.............

My big excitement here comes with low water. Almost everywhere I fish requires travel by jet boat and your jet boat better run extremely shallow. The combined problems and stress they produce would maybe satisfy the kayak guy and the climber. The way things work are like this; in order to run shallow you've gotta go fast so your boat is actually skimming across the surface and forcing as little as 2.5 inches of water to compress under the hull. It is that compresses water that buoys the boat up and allows you to scoot across the really shallow spots.

To go fast you need a big motor and they are heavy. If you screw up and get stuck (as in sitting still in 2.5 inches of water) you cannot move the heavy boat and motor combo so your goal is to not get stuck. Now go figure that on an average run you may go as far as 15 miles up some river in low water conditions. You may be seeing rocks you never knew were there because they are always under water, but not today........... You also have people in the boat who expect you to get them to somewhere that they will catch fish and you don't want to screw up with an audience present.

There you are, going 25 to 30 mph which may not sound fast to you who drive an F250 Ford at 75mph on the highway but believe me it's real fast when you are running an obstacle course filled with boulders and gravel bars. While all the maneuvering and eyes glued to the water are going on there's something else too.......... In the back of your mind you know that there will probably be no one else where you are going because the water is too low in some spots for most boats to make it through. Therefore, if you tear the intake right off that motor you will be on your own for real.

Nah, the climbers and white water kayak guys just have the wrong idea. They are picturing old men with reading glasses perched on their noses sitting on a bench along Letort Spring Creek back in Carlisle PA. That's why they think they are living on the edge while you are comfortable way over in the middle. They have their thing and you have yours, I've been fortunate in that I've done a bit of many things. I've done free style rock climbing and mountain assents, and a fair share of white water sports along the way. Got into Para Sailing and flew out over Cook Inlet which was pretty cool. I don't go looking for excitement any more at all but some activities just provide it whether you want any or not..

I think Fly Fishing has been very rewarding for me if not exciting, rewarding.

 

[gpwhitejr]

Have you ever heard of "skishing"?

Skishing: Taking on Deep Water and Big Fish in a Wetsuit | Outdoor Life

Anyone try that with a fly rod?

 

[littledavid123]

I have been working on drilling rigs since 1979 and have personally witnessed enough excitement to last several lifetimes. Most had happy endings, several unfortunately did not. The result being I no longer consider near death experiences as exciting. Sure the adrenal glands may be pumping but that's just your body making up for a stupid mental lapse.

Give me the quite comfort of a stream all to myself and a few fish willing to take a fly and that's all the excitement I need.

Dave

 

[pnc]

Difference between fresh & salt. Is you meet different animals. Ran into a number of bear in PA. Rutting deer were more a problem. Spent a couple of hours once on beaver hut with buck snorting at me. When fish stopped biting threw up hands yelled. Deer left, then I did.
Now its bull sharks. Not the only sharks here. Big tigers like dredged cannels where canals empty into gulf. But bull sharks are the dangerous ones. Because you never know what they will.do. Friend was bitten by one in knee deep water. About a 3 footer ! Left a ring on his calf about grapefruit size. I'm beginning to think half of them are nuts from to much inbreeding.

........... pc

 

[gpwhitejr]

I'm beginning to think half of them are nuts from to much inbreeding..

The sharks or your friends?

 

[mikechell]

Like some others, I've been fishing for decades. I don't remember the exact dates, or even my age, but ...
Young: Fell off my Dad's boat while running across Raccoon Lake in Indiana. When you have skiers, you have an observer ... but the two of us were going fishing. I was getting a rod ready and stood to lay it against the side of the boat just as we hit a wave. My upward motion never stopped until I was clear of the boat. Dad didn't know and was almost out of sight when he finally did realize. No life jacket and I have always sunk ... I don't float. He got to me as I was going down for the last time.

Young, maybe 8 or 9?: Wandered away from camp to fish a cove, slid down the embankment into the water and got tangled in fishing line. My face was out of the water as I held a branch, that was all. The line was pulling me down, and I knew, if I let go of the branch to try and untangle, I'd go under. If I didn't get untangled quick enough, there'd be no coming up. About 2 hours before someone noticed I wasn't around and they came looking for me.

Older: Snapped a lure out of some weeds and buried a hook in my eyelid. Lucky, it didn't go through my eye. Unlucky, I had a two mile walk to get home. I just remembered that incident as I sat here writing this. Guess that one was traumatic enough, I tried to forget it.

Older still: Wading a small creek on Camp Lejeune MCAS. Stepped on a "mound" that turn out to be a bubble of trapped gas. The bubble burst and I was suddenly chest deep in mud and neck deep in the water. My rod was also buried somewhere ... still is, I suppose. I was able to "wiggle/walk" each foot up an inch or two at a time. Took me about 30 minutes to get back on top where I could get to the bank. 6 inches deeper, and I'd have been immediately under water. Probably would still be there with my fishing rod.

There's a few more ... but I too, have seen my share of death and maimed or dead people. No desire for "excitement" while fishing, other than the strike and fight of a little fish. Bluegill are just fine. No need for me to go after anything bigger.

 

[cab]

The cost of our stuff would bring any sane Man to his knees in terror......

CAB

 

[mikechell]

Sorry, Cab, I can't agree with that statement.
I've got 6 fly rods I carry with me in my boat. Rod, reel and line, none of them cost me more than $120.00
One can get into fly fishing for the same price as any other form of sport fishing.

 

[karstopo]

I wonder why people pick the sports they do. The most adrenaline type of activity I’ve done is para gliding where I was required to run off a mountain until becoming airborne then sail around on updrafts for 20-25 minutes before descending to land. There wasn’t much skill involved on my part since an instructor was strapped to me. I’ve done a few other stunt type things like jumping from high places into deep water. Takes a little nerve, but not a ton of skill.

I think extreme whitewater kayaking or some of the mountain climbing takes a ton of skill along with some well developed athleticism. I’m not sure everyone has the innate abilities to make those hobbies work. Some folks are just better athletes than others and hard work can only close the gap so far. What happens to folks in those sports as they age and the physical abilities inevitably decline? Do they pick tamer rivers to traverse or lower mountains to climb?

There are plenty of potential threats to our safety and well being while fly fishing. Terrestrial and aquatic organisms, threats of drowning, hypothermia, heat stroke, exposure, falls, infection, being hit by a boat, etc. the list is long. We fight or adapt to conditions every outing. We face failure at every turn. Missed casts, the wrong fly, poor presentation, fish with lock jaw. Complete success is a pipe dream. There’s always that one, at least one, missed opportunity.

The more I think it about it, the more I think those whitewater kayakers and mountain climbing types get off easy.