I’ve got a bad case of fishin’ on the brain. So, what’s new? I always have fishin’ on the brain. After the Western North Carolina Fly Fishing Expo the insidious nature of this dilemma has been greatly compounded. Last weekend people from all over gathered in Asheville to share information about new products, tactics and technique, fly tying, mind-blowing artwork, and the list goes on. This potent concoction of fishy folks really got my brain firing. I heard George Daniel talk about contact nymphing, Blane Chocklett talk musky on the fly, Mac Brown discuss dry fly tactics and presentation. My conclusion at the end of the weekend was that I want to do it all and more.
I think a majority of fly shops have a niche. A lot of shops around here fill their niche by floating the South Holston and Watauga. We can do that. Others push the smallmouth trips hard in the summertime. We can do that. Especially with our new NRS inflatable self-bailing drift boat that will be arriving in February (thanks boss)! Some shops take pride in their ability to get clients on wild fish eager to eat dry flies. We can do that. We’ve got miles of blue lines right in our own back yard. Some shops will take you carp fishing. We can do that. We’ve got Lake Keowee and Jocassee right up the road and a john boat perfectly outfitted for such a day. We’ve got musky, bass and bream, and overnight backpack/fishing trips high on our list of things to do. Tenkara, we can do that. Contact nymphing, or Euro-nymphing, yeah, we can definitely do that and it will change the way you think about fly fishing.
Running a fly shop is about more than taking people fishing or selling fly fishing equipment. Fly shops should be ambassadors of this awesome sport to the community. Whether it’s through Casting Carolinas, Project Healing Waters, or Trout in the Classroom, I want Headwaters to be that ambassador. Fly fishing has done some great things for me and has a lot to offer to a lot of people out there. Definitely look for us to get involved with the community and if you have any ideas on that drop us a line.
They say variety is the spice of life and this holds true for me when it comes to catching fish on a fly rod. Sometimes I feel like enticing little wild fish with dries. Sometimes I want to chuck big nasty streamers for browns or musky. Sometimes I want to take my nymphing rod out and dissect a piece of stream, prodding every little thread. I want this attitude to be reflected by our fly fishing program. We’ve got an enthusiastic group of open-minded guides that want to try new things and share what they learn with clients. I want us to be that shop that can do anything a client could dream of and come up with ideas nobody ever thought of. I want to do it all and more.