It's not about the fish - it's about the fishing

Title image: The author fishing in The Borders with guiding from Charlie Brownlow in 2013 

A new season is beginning now where I live and fish in Denmark. It is still cold, so my long-awaited flyfishing in my local river has not really started yet. One day I was out, but I was freezing and the feeling of joy with rod and line disappeared. So warmer days will see me by the riverbank from the early hours and for long days.

Every new season also brings thoughts and contemplations on why - why do I still look forward to casting the fly in the river again. Why is it, that I for one is a passionate fly fisher. How can I mobilize the joy of expectation and the sleepless nights before a day by the river?

I must confess here, that I am one of these guys with many years of experience and access to the water and (now) time on my hand. I am also one of the guys who rarely (never) catch a fish. I am considering myself rather good with the rod and the technique. I am not an expert, but I know how to handle rod and line. I can read the river, and I can put my fly wherever I want. I have hundreds of perfect flies in my boxes. I am determined and concentrated - all the elements in mind and attitude that characterize the true flyfisher.

But I do not catch any fish. That said I take a fish or two from time to time. But they will be (too) small. Fish the size to show off or to take home for a dinner party seems to swim past my flies in the water.

But I keep going and I keep fishing as I have done in more than 60 years. I am actually very content and very happy with my fishing. I am also proud that I master the technique and that I for most of my life has used barbless hooks so my fish can be released in a "human" way.

It is interesting, that I am not alone and not the only one without big fish in the bag. We are a kind of silent majority in the flyfishing circles, I think.

We all know that most of the flyfishers we meet on a day by the river are of a mature age and many have many years behind them by the rivers.

They are not bragging about big fish to fill the freezer. In honesty many of them admit that it might be years since they bagged a decent trout.

I must say that my river (Karup Å in the middle of Jutland) is a very productive river with some of the best sea trout and brown trout fishing in Denmark. The big fish are there - we are just a bunch of guys who do not catch them...

Many writers and fishermen have tried to explain the joys of fishing and especially flyfishing. Mostly it is grand stories about big fish lost and taken and always after the most dramatic fight.

It seems today that size really matters, when fishing is the subject in articles or books. They are looking for and living the dramatic fishing story. I am not in the group who thinks that the fight is the highlight of the day and fishing. I am more into the description of playing the fish. Hooking the fish and carefully bringing it to the net and then carefully releasing it again with no harm done.

The day by the river or the big water seems to be something that just is for these fishermen/women. They are part of a setup and often part of a video shoot to demonstrate man's superiority over the elements and the big fish.

For me and my like-minded, it is exactly the day, the weather and the fishing that is important - not the big fish or the lust to share with everyone.

For me the day is perfect when I have the good Lord patting me on my shoulder, the Sun in my back - and no wind...

These are the days when everything fills your mind and your body. These are the days when the troubles of the world disappear from your mind. Days when everything is about the rod, the cast, the fly and where to place it in the water. Days when time stands still and only hunger or thirst can justify a break or a bite. Days when lying on your back in the grass by the river transforms into a zen-like state of mind.

Only a splash from a jumping trout can bring you to your feet again...

People I know never ask "Did you catch anything today...?" They know the answer and maybe they are kind or maybe they feel pity for the old man with the fly rod. I understand because for most people and the ordinary fisherman the catch and the size of the fish or the size of the bag is important. There is something eccentric about a fisherman/woman that gives a damn about the catch. It's like a hunter going out with gun and dog with no interest in shooting game. (I know a couple of these I must say).

There is often a considerable amount of money to be paid for the right to fish the river. I am lucky to be part of a local association with miles of fishing in Jutland for a very reasonable membership fee. I consider it cheap for the right to be close to the rivers and exercise my fly-casting.

In that perspective my shooting days were very different. The hunters among you will be familiar with the exorbitant cost per bird on a day out shooting, even when you may be lucky to bring home a handful or two.

It is in my head the whole day loaded with impressions big and small things to remember. That exactly gives the day great value in my book.

"Why do you continue fishing?" you could ask. This is a natural question. I hope I have provided at least some kind of explanation here. And I am sure many flyfishers will nod and agree in understanding my thoughts and my way of doing things - in spite of the contradiction of it all.

After all, it is down to one simple sentence: "It's not about the fish - it's about the fishing!"

Tight Lines!