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The Productivity of Quiet
Written By: Chris Wilkes - The Highland Hiker | Issue: 2021/06 – June | Photograph By: Susan Renfro
There’s beauty built into those moments when we slow down and open our eyes and our minds.
A lot of us don’t have time to fish everyday. That’s why when we do get a free morning or afternoon we tend to rush around and try to fit as much in as we can. We throw our gear in the back of the car, we speed to the river, and we rush down into the water before we even tie on a fly.
We may have maximized our time on the river, but you probably cost yourself 30 to 60 minutes of good fishing. I preach a lot of patience in these articles, mostly about taking in the scenery and enjoying the outdoors over the frustration of losing a big brown trout or getting a line caught in a tree. But patience can be an effective strategy for netting trout as well.
For instance, a lot of people will tie a fly on before even getting streamside to try and save time. A better play is to get down to the river bank and…Just. Sit. Down. Give the ecosystem time to reacclimate to your noise. We make a lot of racket on our way to the water, even when we are trying not to. When you just take a seat and catch your breath you will be amazed at what you see taking place with bugs, fish, and sometimes even a few squirrels will start their activity again.
Take this time to lift up a rock streamside. See what you find underneath. Waterbugs? Worms? Chances are, whatever you find under the rock is what the trout are eating. We all want a big dry fly hatch to happen, but most of the time the nymph patterns are what will dependably net the fish.
Once you get the fly tied on, carefully wade out in the water and give another 30 second or so count to let things settle before casting out. Make the best presentation you can and watch as you have a much more productive first 30 minutes fishing.
Tight Lines everyone!
