How do you talk about fly fishing?

Over the years I’ve sold fly fishing gear, taught fly casting, and instructed teens in fly fishing. Recently, I’ve taken a few opportunities to write about fly fishing and talk about it on a podcast. The more I talk about fly fishing, the more I think about how I talk about fly fishing.

Talking about fly fishing is not always the easiest to do, thus Matthew Lourdeau has some advice for you!

There are different situations, and people, that you’ll encounter. In my humble opinion, there are some tried and true tactics for communicating what fly fishing is and how it works. Here are three common circumstances:

People that are just being polite.

They’re going to be bored. So talk about the experience.

Fly patterns and tippet sizes aren’t going to make for fun conversation at the next dinner party you’re invited to attend. If Sex Dungeons and 7X fluorocarbon are the extent of your conversational skills, it might be the last dinner party you’re invited to attend.

Even the most indoorsy people understand the allure of adventure and personal challenge. There is so much of that in fly fishing. Share something about yourself - not what is in your vest or what will get comments from people on the message board.

People that want to give it a shot.

They might not catch any fish. So talk about the experience.

Every once in a while, it is important to remind fly fishers that fly fishing is not the most efficient or effective way to catch fish. Worms and Power Bait will do that. So why do you choose a harder road to travel?

That thrill and that experience, that rhythm and that minutiae – those are the things that you need to pass on as you help someone get into fly fishing. Yes, they need to be able to cast and make a presentation. Yes, they have to read the water and match the hatch. But you can do that all wrong and still have a good time if you appreciate why you’re really out there.

People that get it.

They’re not going to be impressed by you, what you know, or what you’ve caught. So talk about the experience.

We’ve all been there: the best fish you caught all trip or all season wasn’t the biggest. It was the fish that made you work. It was the fish that you failed to catch over and over and over. It was the fish that you caught even though your rod tip broke or you fell in or you thought it was a trout but it was really a huge fallfish. (Maybe not that one… but that is still a good story.)

In the fly fishing community, we know which fish matter most. It could very well be the biggest. But the biggest smiles often come when a lot more than a trout is talked about.

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All that said, it is obvious that there is no way to express the entirety of the activity and the experience through words. You just have to do it. And even then – even when you’re having a spectacular day on the water, you know there is more to it. You’re not dissatisfied; you’re content in knowing that nature has more mysteries to explore than you could in a day or a lifetime.

See? Those last two sentences could be blown out into pages or chapters, but I’d still only be scratching the surface of what I’d be trying to get at. But that doesn’t mean I don’t try.

So, when you’re asked what you did over the weekend, how do you talk about fly fishing?