The Best Fly Fishing is Everywhere - 02.06.2025
Ramblings & Readings, Creativity & Conservation, Happenings & Hope
My Fishy Friends,
I’m preparing for a road trip that will not involve any fishing in the traditional sense. But, I’ll be crossing paths with fishers for the entirety of the journey, so that’s just about as good, I think. Of course, we’re all fishing for something, right?
Cheers,
Jesse
Banner photo: What would I give for rushing rivers and fresh snow?
The Jane Project
Now in its 30th year, Casting for Recovery is a Bozeman-based nonprofit whose mission is to provide healing outdoor retreats for women with breast cancer. This year, coinciding with the current Fly Fishing Film Tour, they’ve released a campaign called The Jane Project, which is also the name of CfR’s traveling drift boat. The campaign includes many ways to get involved and support the cause—in person and online—as well as a premier film in the tour featuring a dear friend of mine, Kara Armano.
Lefty on The Approach
From the Fly Fisherman archives comes this piece by the late Lefty Kreh, entitled “The Approach–-Your Fishing Success Depends on It.” It caught my eye because angling stealth is a topic I’ve considered—in reading and in writing—for a while. I know it makes a difference (all the difference occasionally), but not all the time. My book has a chapter on the variable value of stealth in fly fishing, and I’ll only add that the piece contains: “KABOOOM!”
The Silent Spotter
“The Silent Spotter,” a film from Oregon-based Off The Grid Studios, follows a nontraditional fly fishing film main character: Tommy Batun, a deaf and mute fly-fishing guide in Xcalak, Mexico. His communication style is undoubtedly one-of-a-kind, but the goal—catching a permit on fly—is one that any angler can relate to; hence the camaraderie and friendshp surrounding Tommy.
Self-Direct at PLAYA
PLAYA Summer Lake is a place for the intersection of art and science, as they say, and I can personally attest to the degree of deep work that can be achieved in their quiet, distraction-less, and introspective setting. The dates of theiir annual self-directed residencies—where you work on what you want to, when and how you want to—were recently posted, and I encourage all readers to consider a visit. And if not at PLAYA, then perhaps in a similar kind of venue closer to home.
Fishing or Anything Else
You put yourself into some sort of trance to receive certain songs. You know, it's like setting a trap for a song. It's like fishing or anything else. You have to be real quiet to catch the big ones.
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