It was a beautiful spring day. The sky was blue, the sun was out, and the trees were budding with new life. The best part of it was that I had the stream all to myself - or, so I thought........ I had been to this stretch of stream just three days before, when conditions weren't as good, & I had hooked into - & lost - a very smart trout. Naturally, I was on a mission to meet up with that trout again (as you would be, too I'm sure). As I walked the trail through the woods that ran somewhat parallel to the stream, thinking of said trout & my plan of attack, I was in good spirits. Being the only angler along the water that morning I was very confident I could fish the spot where I was outwitted by my trout without any other angler getting in the way. I heard him before I saw him. There was another angler here, and he was obviously having some kind of difficulties. I say 'obviously' because he was loudly & creatively in a tirade which was heavily laced with profanity. He included all the common cuss words & then moved onto some more imaginative ones. He even added some unique uses of the old standards, too. I slowed my walking pace to take it all in, as I found it both entertaining & somewhat educational. Soon, mixed into the tapestry of his profanity, came the sounds of splashing water & the sharp staccatos of sticks & twigs snapping. Then, silence. All went quiet & the woods returned to as they were before. Whatever that was, it was now over.
As I picked up my walking pace again I approached a blind curve in the trail & that's where we both met - him heading in the opposite direction as me. I was relieved to see that he wasn't physically hurt in any way. We made eye contact & I saw this stranger's facial expression change from anger to embarrassment in an instant. Obviously he, too thought he was alone on the stream. As loud as his tirade had been, he knew that I must have heard it. He had already taken his rod apart & I could see a tangled bird's nest of leader hanging from the rod tip in his hand. In my mind I felt pity for the guy but I'm sure that outwardly I was grinning. I asked him if he was okay in a casual tone & that seemed to soften his embarrassment some. He informed me that he was alright & went on to explain that he was new to fishing & was trying to learn, but had been having nothing but trouble. He just couldn't get the hang of it. "I don't know why anybody does this fishing thing!", he said. "Is there anything I can do to help you", I asked. "I'll be happy to show you anything I can." "Nah, to hell with it," he said with a gesture. "Thanks, anyway but I've had enough of this. I'm going golfing for the rest of the day." I wished him good luck & we parted company. Certainly that fellow's problem was that he had no one to show him the ropes of the sport. I would have been willing to do that for him, as much as I could, spending the better part of my day if that's what it took. The thought did occur to me that I hoped he was a better golfer than he was angler. If not, good luck to all those other golfers on the course he was headed to! Who knows, maybe it was a good thing (for me) that he declined my offer to help? But it was a beautiful spring day. The sky was blue, the sun was out, & the trees were budding with new life - & I had a score to settle with a very smart trout. Well, as much as I don't want time to pass too quickly, it is true that the Holidays will be upon us before very long. To that end, you might want to consider getting your favorite angler one of the leather fly wallets I make. These are one of the most popular leather fishing accessories I make & there's always a rush at the Holidays for me to complete all the orders for them. This year I will be making another large batch of fly wallets, in both colors of leather, to be ready for the Holiday shopping season. This way you can have your wallet in time without worrying if I'll have it made for you in time. Now's the time to get your name on the list for a leather fly wallet for the Holidays. The next large batch of fly wallets will be coming in early to mid November - if all goes according to plan. If you're wanting one of these wallets to give to that special angler this Holiday season, please contact me to pre-order your fly wallets now. If you're not familiar with the leather fly wallets I make, you can read all about them, & see tons of photos, over on the Leather Accessories page. If you have any questions about them - or anything else - please feel free to ask me & I'll be happy to help you.
It's all over the news these days that some items in the world might be in short supply over the Holidays. Hopefully we can make your getting of special angling gifts (like nice leather fly wallets) a little easier & less stressful this year. |
The Pliant RodNews from the shop of Chris Lantzy, Custom Rod Maker along with industry news, profiles of interesting characters, reviews, history, & whatever else strikes our fancy. Your comments & feedback are welcome. Please email me your thoughts. Celebrating two decades of making custom fly rods!!
leather accessoriesCases, bags, wallets, & other fine leather angling accessories.
See more photos from the rod shop & stream sides!
SEE MORE ROD PHOTOS!!!Please visit my Flickr pages to see even more rod photos including those available for sale, different rod features, & more. I'll be continuing to add photos there, so check it often.
Watch Some Videos!!Take a look into the rod shop & see some rods in living color motion pictures!! Check out my youtube videos.
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