Sunlight

The days have remained dreary of late, though there is a promise of sunlight today. With snow arriving for a weekend visit, I will make the most of the brief hours of warmth and cheer that December chooses to share.

I am still wandering in that lengthy period of seasonal adjustment. A few books have been read, a few flies tied, but there have been too many hours spent in limbo. I am yet to begin the necessary tasks of winter, sorting flies, polishing rods, taking stock of the hooks and materials required for winter’s creations.

The Translucence Series is planned for expansion, so a careful inventory of silk is necessary. Ordering must happen sooner rather than later, as delivery takes time. As I sort my supplies, I must consider my needs for new blends to mimic additional hatches. I have tended to blend very small amounts of dubbing, as I have always done for experimental flies. Once proven however, as several have been, it makes sense to blend a reasonable supply.

There may be room for another winter fly as well. After a few months of ideas dashing through my brain, the baitfish imitation that has teased my consciousness now lies in the fly box. The Dazed Dace has seen water for the first time and will continue it’s early trials today. Though I found no quality trout out and about at the beginning of the week, I was pleased with the new fly’s appearance in the water.

It is hard to avoid drifting back in memory at this time of year, a dalliance I allow and enjoy, for it permits me to recall moments of understanding, impressions, and the spur of the moment ideas that brightened many days and never found their way to fur, feathers and steel.

Fly fishers will leap at the chance to debate the merits of trout flies, some firmly convinced that they need no more than a handful of classic patterns to face every situation the stream provides. One will denounce the importance of color, convinced that form and visibility are paramount, others will swear all of it is rubbish, and presentation alone brings trout to their nets. Though I love the classics and their histories, I am long convinced that our trout are changing, and that one of the keys to successful fishing is to continue upon the paths of those historic anglers to improve our flies and our skills upon the water! Our angling history was peopled by seekers! It is my own appreciation of angling history that brought me here. I attempt to honor that history by my own humble efforts, and the quest keeps life fresh and invigorating!

Ah, there is warm light in the sky. Time for breakfast and assembling gear. Soon cane will flex and the Dace will be released to explore a December river…