Is Fly Fishing Covered By Insurance?

We have all seen the photos of someone standing knee deep in a stream while fly-fishing. It looks so peaceful, out in nature, enjoying God’s creation and pulling in huge trout. Well it seldom starts out that way! Fly-fishing is an art form. It takes practice and patience. For some, it’s almost a Zen thing. “You must be one with the elements”. Well for me, I also needed a credit card with a low balance. Gone are the days of digging up some worms, fishing with a tree limb and a line thicker then a shoelace. Fish are much smarter these days. We live in the times of Hi-Tech fishing. Millions of dollars are spent in researching and understanding fish habitat, and then developing new products to catch these smart fish. The tree branch rods have been replaced with co-polymer, laminated, graphite, wiz-bang rods with titanium guides, which come in various weights, lengths and colors. Reels that cost more then them my laptop, and lines, which sink, float, fast or slow taper, tipper, leader and knots, which use a nail! I just want to catch a fish!!!

Now we come to the flies. I never knew there were so many different types of bugs. Some of these flies are tied on a hook so small, I would need two pairs of reading glasses to even see them, while others are the size of a small bird. I am told I need a wide variety because I need to “match the hatch”, which is code for find the fly that looks like that bug, which just bit you. Don’t worry about that red welt which is growing to the size of your eyeball. You are doing this to relax and have fun.

I soon learned it’s not ok to wade in the stream with cut-offs and sneakers. NOOOOOOO! You need breathable lightweight waders with wading boots and a fishing vest. I guess I should have checked the dress code. Ok, there is another $350. Again, I just want to catch some fish.

I should have been suspicious when my wife didn’t complain about me spending all of this money on fly-fishing. I just thought she was being supportive and rewarding me for working all of those long hard hours at work. I think I discovered her evil plot on one of my first trips.

I am now set. I have my $600 fly rod with my $400 reel. My $350 waders and boots, $50 hat, $150 prescription polarized sunglasses and $300 worth of flies and assorted tackle. As I start to enter the river I thought, “there better be some damn fish in here”! I carefully waded out to what I thought was a good spot. After just a few casts, I decided it would be better to stand on a nearby rock. It was a pretty rock. It had a lovely green color to it. As soon as my foot touched that rock, I understood my college physics class. When a 300-pound body is in motion, and steps on a slimy green rock, the laws of thermal dynamics will prevent my foot from stopping. It appears that the green ooze on the rock, is much like spraying silicone on the break pads of your car. I was not aware that my legs could spread that far! I guess it helped that my other foot became lodged between two other rocks. It would have helped if my knee had not struck that green rock, as I fell into the water. If my waders were breathable, they should have spit out all of the water that was rushing inside. I must have looked like a float in the Macy’s day parade. I now know what a Turtle experiences, when we place then on their backs. With my $50 hat and $150 prescription sunglasses gone, I struggled to get to my feet. Since my waders were now full of water I must have weighed somewhere around the 500 pound mark. All this time, I am thinking, “It’s fine, I am just a little wet. The worst is over”.  At least I had my fly rod and all of the gear. That is until I again slipped and fell on the rod snapping it like a tooth pick.

At this point, the thought of catching a fish has left my mind. I just wanted to get out of these water logged waders and clothes. My knee was swelling and my ankle was starting to throb. Since I was in a rather secluded portion of the river with no one was around, I decided to strip naked and wring out my clothes. All I could think of is “how am I going to keep these wet clothes off my leather car seats?” I CERTAINLY did not want to stain those lovely seats. I just bought the car a few months ago.

As luck has it, it was a warm summer day. I laid my clothes on the near by bushes to dry.  As I lay down to rest for a while, I must have fallen asleep. I was having such a wonderful dream of catching fish with my new fly rod, when I felt something poking me. When I opened my eyes, I discovered that a small crowd had assembled. It seems a family was floating down the river and reported a dead body on the beach. They said, “He must be dead because his stomach is bloated.” Well, I wasn’t dead, but I was a little sunburned. It’s interesting that the portions of our bodies, which seldom see the sun, burn sooner then, let’s say our arms. Oh yah! I was on a rocky beach, buck naked with a swollen knee, throbbing ankle, and burned gonads! I didn’t need to worry about staining my lovely leather car seats, because that nice police officer with the nightstick, gave me a ride to the jail. My clothes were dry once my wife came down and bailed me out. The police were so nice to tow my car for safe keeping while I was staying in their care and it only cost me $500 to get it back. I am no longer interested in learning how to fly fish. I now hire a guide, so if anything breaks, or I get arrested, I will have someone to sue!

Ken Bear Cole

Fishing with Bear LLC

Fly & Bobber Technique

As a professional fishing guide, I am often asked if I “fly fish.” My common response is, “yes, I fish with flies, but not with a fly rod.” Most people are surprised to here that you can catch trout on flies with a bait casting or spinning rig. The truth is, this method will out fish most of the purists 8 to1.

Most fishermen, who fly fish, do so from shore. Conventional fly fishermen need to wade out into the water, or utilize a float tube, to create the required distance behind them for casting. If you use a spinning rig, you can keep you feet dry and cast much further then your purist friends.

One of the secrets lies in a water bobber. This is a plastic bobber, which has a hollow center tube. You can thread you line through the tube allowing for an adjustable distance between the fly and the bobber. The reason I use a water bobber is that the tube can be pushed on one end of the bobber to allow water to partially or fully fill the bobber. This provides weight for casting distance; but will sink slowly when fully filled, or floats when only partially filled. This solves one of the biggest problems when fly fishing, which is getting the fly to the fish.

I thoroughly enjoy catching trout or bass on flies. They seem to fight harder because the hook is usually lodged in the corner of the mouth. The trout tend to become airborne more when hooked by a fly.

Rigging for Flies: (See Photo)
Main Line: Runs through bobber & bead, then ties to barrel swivel.
Leader: Tie the fly on 4-pound fluorocarbon line or leader. Leader length should be 6-8’. Tie the leader on to the barrel swivel.

The Presentation:
Fill the bobber approximately half full of water.
Cast the bobber. Give a little flick on the rod to locate the fly and bobber. This will also straighten out the leader to prevent knots. Retrieve the fly slowly.

If you see a fish rise, cast past the rise and retrieve the fly through the rise ring in the water. The trout will strike quick and hard. They think they are crushing an insect in their jaws. Many times you will see the fish take the fly. Set the hook! You must keep the tension on the fish or he will spit the hook.

If the trout are not rising, completely fill the bobber with water. When you cast it out, it will sink slowly. Count to five or so and retrieve slowly. The longer you count before retrieving, the deeper the fly will run. You will need to play with the depth until you find the fish.

Have a wonderful time fishing!

Ken Bear Cole
Fishing with Bear