You Need Your Casting Arm to Fish

I’m no stranger to moving chairs from point A to point B. My first job involved moving chairs. I still move chairs. Pick them up, put them down, stack them back up. For me, moving chairs is inevitable.

Two weeks ago, while moving chairs, I felt a twinge in my elbow. Using one arm, I was moving two chairs in order to pick them up. There was a table in between me and the stack of chairs. Consequently, my arm was fully extended. Immediately before grabbing them with my other hand, I felt the sharp pain on the top of my elbow. The elbow of my right arm.

Which just so happens to be my casting arm.

That day my elbow was generally sore. The next day it hurt when I moved it. It was difficult to exercise or even pick up light objects. I decided to take it easy. Later that week, even with rest, it still hurt. I talked to my friend, who happens to be a physician’s assistant. I explained my symptoms. He pinched a spot on my elbow. He knew just where to touch, because it hurt. “Tennis elbow,” he said, “just give it time.”

But it had me worried.

Some of the worry was directly tied to fly fishing. Hurting my casting arm in December is one thing. Hurting it in April? Right before the season? That won’t do. Plus, I’m getting more and more into saltwater fly fishing. Throwing sinking lines on eight- and nine-weights takes its toll on one’s arm. Moreover, the surging tugs of a striper would generate the exact stresses that caused the most pain.

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Elevate Youth: Nature, Fish, & Transformation

When his Little Brother through Big Brothers Big Sisters didn’t understand why anyone would want to go into the woods to just walk around, an idea began to form in Alec Griswold’s mind. He had the opportunity to share the outdoors with a young person. More than that, it was a young person who had never spent any time out of an urban setting. He had the opportunity to share everything that goes along with being outdoors: adventure, wonder, and fun.

Griswold appreciates the opportunities he had growing up. “We lived on a 100-acre farm in Maryland. I would come home from school, go out the backdoor, and just cruise around. I’d spend my days hooking fish and building forts. It had a large impact on my life, and what would be my profession.” He also spent time away from the waters and woods. Griswold volunteered in inner city Baltimore throughout high school, learning about experiences and perspectives other than his own.

After college, his journey had several other formative stops. In Patagonia, Chile, he participated in and worked for NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School). Moving to Nantucket, he ran a kayak rental company and learned the inner workings of business. Then, he spent time in community-based conservation with the Waterkeeper Alliance in Boston.

In 2015, while working in marketing, Griswold became a Big Brother through Big Brother Big Sisters. “Things began to click. I remember always looking for things to do with my Little Brother. We would do things that were completely new for him, like hiking or fishing.” Adding those activities to the long-term mentor relationship really made a difference in the young people he was working with. Moreover, it fueled a passion in his life to do something meaningful.

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Podcast Ep. 24: You Never Go Fly Fishing Alone

Although fly fishing is an escape, we’re incapable of detaching completely. Our thoughts rightly meander from fly presentation to work, family, whats next. Our present fishing is profoundly linked to how we have fished – and who has fished with us in the past. And chances are the trails we are walking, the flies we are using, and the rod we are casting were made by someone else.

There is something to be said for that connection.

Listen to the episode below, or in your favorite podcast app.

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All the Fish You Can’t Catch

There are more fish out there that you can’t catch than you can catch.

Let that sink in for a minute. The statement, although hardly profound, is true at a number of levels.

  • Firstly, you’re not going to catch all the fish in any given river. Perhaps in a small creek you’d be able to trick the majority of naive and opportunistic trout. In a large river? You’d struggle to cast to half of them, let alone catch a calculable percentage. That should humble you as an angler.
  • More importantly, you’re pretty far from most of the fish in the sea. Some live across the country. Some live across the globe. Some swim in lands that are dangerous to travel in. Some live miles below the surface of the water. They’re going to be there, and you aren’t.
  • Furthermore, there are thousands upon thousands of species that aren’t going to show any interest in your fly. For every bass out there, hundreds of fish aren’t going to give you the time of day. That should humble you as a person.

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It’s Just Something – It’s Fly Fishing Gear

“Yeah, but it’s just…”

Surf around on fly fishing message boards, scroll through social media, or hang out at angling events and you’ll hear this sentiment about any number of fly fishing products.

“That material is just something you can get at the craft store.”

“That hat is just a hat with a fishing patch on the front.”

“That rod is just last year’s model with different colors.”

“That fly is just a woolly bugger with dumbbell eyes.”

“That shirt is just a quick-dry shirt with a company’s logo on it.”

…and on and on.

I get it. There are some things in fly fishing catalogs that are essentially dollar store items with a price tag-escalating sticker slapped on it. (But if people pay for it, can you blame them?) Or, the updated model is simply a slight improvement touted as the coming of the angling revolution. Whether it is righteous economic indignation or general distaste for perceived dishonesty, some people like to call attention to these offerings. I get it.

I usually don’t spend the money, either.

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Podcast Ep. 23: Banjo Minnows & Fly Fishing

On its face, fly fishing elitism is silly.

It is okay to prefer the fly rod. And it has it advantages. But there is no reason to look down upon conventional tackle. In fact, there are plenty of reasons why a spinning rod should be part of your overall angling arsenal.

In this episode, I talk about a few circumstances that might necessitate using conventional gear. Also, I look at how using bobbers, blades, and Banjo Minnows might actually help your fly fishing.

Listen to the episode below, or in your favorite podcast app.

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Shiny Happy Fly People

If anything about fly fishing gets you down – and I mean really gets you down – maybe it isn’t for you. Maybe you should try wing shooting or surfing or sneaker collecting or  curling. But I am virtually certain that the same kind of things that can get you flustered in fly fishing are present in all those, and any other activity. Challenge, expense… and people.

Challenge is part of it. If fly fishing is hard, keep at it. You’ll get it. I’m convinced that if you are a terrible angler that there is a fish out there that is worse yet at looking out for itself. Something is going to bite. And through a process of natural fly fishing selection, you’ll slowly evolve into a better  version of yourself.

Expense is also a part of it. But it doesn’t have to be a huge part of it. You can spend a little and get a lot. All you really need is terminal tackle, a few woolly buggers, and a license. There is a lot of noise out there about all the other stuff you can get. But even the most well-equipped fly fisher is going to own less than what is available in toto.

Thus, dealing with challenge and expense is a you issue. You can work through those things and be okay with what you can do and not do; what you own and what you don’t own. If, after a prolonged period of time, you’re still addled with angst? Fly fishing might not be for you.

But what about people?

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New Page: Small Stream Fly Rods

Generally on Casting Across, I write what I want to write about. But I still look to see what takes;  what catches people’s eyes.

In the last year I’ve noticed that one subject has received a lot of attention. Last April I wrote a post on the perfect small stream fly rod. In December, I recorded a podcast covering the same subject matter. Both have been popular. Each receives numerous reads/downloads every day.

I chalk it up to three things:

  • Fly fishers spend a lot of time on mountain brooks and spring creeks
  • Fly fishers like gear reviews
  • Fly fishers who are serious about fishing small streams want any advantage they can get

With all of this in mind, I created a new page on Casting Across:

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Podcast Ep. 22: Get Organized… Now!

If you have been stuck indoors, you might want to just grab your sling or vest and hit the water as quickly as possible.

But it is helpful to take some deliberate time to clean up. Also, comprehensively organizing your fly fishing pack ahead of time will ensure that you are ready to fish. Once you hit the water, you’ll have everything that you use and not necessarily be carrying around those things that you’ve just accumulated.

Here is one efficient and effective method for making sure you have what you need, where you need it.

Listen to the episode below, or in your favorite podcast app.

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Reveille at Camp Fly Fish

I’m sure there are plenty of summer camps that feature a sunrise wake-up call. But I can’t imagine many of them are attended joyfully by teenagers. Instead of grueling runs or study sessions in the a.m., students at the Pennsylvania Rivers Conservation & Fly Fishing Youth Camp are up, dressed, and waist-deep in the water.  After all, dawn is prime time for catching trout. For five days in a row that is how these students get to start their day.

That doesn’t sound bad, does it?

But it isn’t all fun and games. Maybe it is all fun, but it isn’t only about chasing trout for a week in June. The fun starts on the water at daybreak, but is then woven through classroom sessions, streamside labs, and legitimate conservation projects. The whole program is all about empowering young men and women to be stewards of the resource today and tomorrow. Students leave camp with every tool at their disposal to be active members of their local Trout Unlimited chapter. They are equally equipped to start a fly fishing club at their high school.

Nothing against sports camps, but the reality is that an infinitesimal fraction of participants will still be playing football, cheerleading, or Fortnite-ing twenty years from now. Conversely, someone can fly fish when they are 15 or 95. Someone can speak up on behalf of their local watershed whether they are a seasoned, elected official or just a young, concerned citizen. Someone can protect trout and their ecosystems vigorously, regardless of age, income, or experience.

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