Fly Fishing: The Art Of Escape

Humans have an innate need to escape environments they find dangerous, boring, distasteful and/or toxic in some real or implied way. All living things need to be able to escape things that may be harmful to them. With people as opposed to animals, the drive has a much wider scope of reason and purpose. Humans of course try to escape things that would be physically injurious but they take escapism to a much higher level. Escape is taken further to include the levels of emotion, tranquility and self-awareness without the intrusive thoughts of work, appointments, and the weight of family and the mundane JOB. Whether bouncing stone flies on the bottom of a small stream in January or casting to rising Trout in June this experience is in total absence of the world populated by those non believers in fish magic. Once you step into the river, the water pushes by and you can feel your blood pressure dropping, your head disposing of all the thoughts that would interfere with fishing. You must focus on the fish, environment, hatches and every other aspect of the outdoor environment. The flow of the water and rhythmic casting of your rod soon transport you into your own private world smoothly and quietly. The transition is seamless. The only thing left to complete this magic is that sudden tug or a rising fish and you have made your escape once more! The outcome of a day of flyfishing has always been a comfortable, restful fatigue, very different from the exhaustion that comes from worrying all day. Your immune system is stronger as is your ability to think. “Oh! And the fish were Huge!!” The need to escape is genuine and necessary to maintain balance and have your place to redesign yourself, time after time.