Summertime – Go Fishing!

Blog, Talk About Town — By admin on July 20, 2010 6:13 pm

Flies, Fish and the Art of Deception

By Sheila Sepkowski

I like to think of myself as a wannabe adrenalin junkie. My bucket list is peppered with words like skydiving, bungee jumping and the lofty ascents of famous mountains.

That is why when I found myself standing in the Bow River, thigh-high in water just barely thawed, I wondered if fly-fishing was something subconsciously scribbled at the bottom of that list.

I was there with Routes editor/publisher, Sandra Wiebe, and the magazine’s graphic design wizard, Sharon Syverson, to try fly-fishing for the first time. Of course, this excursion would not have been possible without some much-needed help. Our guide, Jason Baxter, owner and operator of Headwater Fly-Fishing based out of Turner Valley, found the perfect location, which, much to my surprise, turned out to be in the middle of Calgary in beautiful Fish Creek Provincial Park.

While Jason’s clientele is largely male, he believes women are extremely competent because of their more gentle and patient ways. “There are a lot of women starting to fly-fish,” he said. “It does not require (physical) strength and women are more willing and open-minded in the sense that they have no preconceived ideas of how it should be done.”

After we struggled into the fashionable hip-waders, (and yes, there are pockets for lip-gloss) complete with attached rubber boots, Jason gave us a quick lesson in casting, along with instructions on how to fasten a fly on the end of our lines. Admittedly, we did get some odd looks from passersby who sized up the three women holding fishing rods, clumping down the path in heavy, oversized menswear in mid April.

Like many, my only knowledge of fly-fishing I gathered from watching the movie A River Runs Through It. From that rather limited education, I imagined something along the lines of immediately being able to expertly toss my line through the air where it would sail across the water and successfully secure a shimmering lengthy fish. I would then fight valiantly to keep it on the line and later stand tall and grin triumphantly for the inevitable photo.

That vision was a little off, but after talking with Jason about his philosophy on fly-fishing, I was not disappointed. He believes it is not all about landing a fish.

“It’s more about communing with nature, meeting people and helping them to connect with the outdoors,” he said. His passion for the sport was evident given his 25-years of dedication to fly-fishing, the previous seven of that as a guide.

We took Jason’s lead and eased ourselves into a spot in the river. The chilly water against my hip-waders was like a cold gel pack wrapping itself around my legs. After stabilizing ourselves against the current, we put our newly learned casting lesson to use. Overcoming our initial anxiety of being caught by our own flies, or attaching our hooks to someone else, we fell into a comfortable rhythm, where the only sounds were the flowing water, the occasional helpful hint from our guide, and the sound of lines zipping from reel to water. I quickly learned however, that there is much more to fly-fishing than tossing a line into the water. It’s a study in the art of deception. Every fly is made to imitate the fat little insects the fish hunger for. The skill comes in as soon as the line hits the water; at this moment the line is meant to land in such a way as to allow the fly to float along gingerly, just like its real counterparts.

The feeling of relaxation was unexpected, given we were in the middle of one of the biggest cities in Canada. But the nicest surprise came from the realization that I could reap the same reward I get from climbing to the top of a mountain: peace.

In the end, although there were no glorious shouts of victory, there were a few nibbles, lots of smiles, shrugs and good conversation.

Tags: fishing the bow, fly fishin, Jason Baxter, routes, routes mag