WRITING ON THE FLY
By GEORGE LISET
It’s raining today. Not just rain, but a deluge of biblical proportions. My canoe is ready by the back door just in case. I was supposed to go fishing today. I had it all planned. I was going to take a leisurely ride up north and hit some small streams. I had my three weight Orvis Superfine rigged up with a little hopper/ dropper action. I was going to wet wade and enjoy the overcast day with the hope that maybe I could catch a hatch of Blue Wing Olives or Caddis.
I enjoy fishing on overcast days. The fish seem a little less hesitant to take the fly and I have had some of my best luck on less than perfect days. That wasn’t always the case. When I was young, I preferred sunny days with perfect weather. I remember fishing some small trout ponds on the family farm in Catawba, Wisconsin with a cane pole and a bobber. When I was young, I think the only thing that could hold my attention for longer than a minute was watching the bobber and waiting for it to bob.
I’d fish Lake Ten for BlueGills and Sunfish. Although I was recently corrected by my grandson Jarrett who was fishing his Iowa grandfather’s farm pond when he caught a BlueGill. Upon learning that he had caught a BlueGill, with a puzzled look, he informed his father that the fish wasn’t blue, it was green, and that he had actually caught a Green Gill. I stand corrected.
As I have made the transformation from baitcaster to fly fisher, I have come to appreciate fishing in foul weather. For one thing, living in New Hampshire, there seems to be more not-so-great days than perfect days. As a matter of fact, I’m almost to the point where I will not fish on good days, it’s too crowded for one thing.
One time, on an overcast day, floating in a remote pond near Jackman, Maine with my friend Charley, it began to rain. The fishing was slow to that point but then began to pick up. The rain got heavier and then was followed by thunder. I slowly worked my way over to the edge of the pond expecting lightning. The thunder was getting closer and closer and Charley was still out in the middle of the pond catching trout left and right.
I yelled out to Charley and suggested he should probably come in. All I could picture in my mind was the golfer at the end of the “CaddyShack” movie that got fried by lightning. Charley waved me off and replied that it wasn’t lightning yet.
I’ve been on fishing trips where I have been caught on the river when it started raining. Usually I am dressed appropriately with my waders and Gore Tex raincoat. So the rain doesn’t bother, but the fish not biting does. Most fly fishers will stay on the water in any condition if the fish are biting. As long as the river or stream is not blown out and the color of chocolate milk you have a chance.
On my most recent trip up north with my son Reed, we got caught in a big rain storm. It was towards the end of the day and we had caught some fish. Reed gave me the look as if to say “Time to go”. I mentioned that it never rains on the river, to which he replied, “And it doesn’t rain in the hot tub either!” Good point, so we left.
George Liset of Dover is an award-winning outdoor writer and avid fly fisherman who shares insights of his time on the water exploring New Hampshire streams and rivers as well of those around New England. George is a graduate of Wheaton College, Illinois, and the University of New Hampshire. His column Writing on the Fly has been honored by the New England Press Association and the New Hampshire Press Association.
