It is with every Christmas and New Year’s
Day that I find myself with appropriate time for reflection on the year past,
and the new year to come.
New Year’s Resolutions
In my mind I see that empty collection of
dates branded with the experiences of the past year. Bass fishing in the farm ponds near my home
in spring, smallmouth fishing in the spring and summer, catching crappie as
they move shallow in Lake Anna and other large reservoirs, trout fishing as the
weather and water permits, squirrel hunting when the acorns begin to fall, and
deer hunting as the year wanes and begins anew.
Each experience is seasonal, as is the life
of an outdoorsman. You follow the
spawning and feeding patterns, water temperatures, and migrations, hoping to
land within the brief window of opportunity as it presents itself unannounced, albeit
always anticipated.
To miss one of those windows is a sad thing
indeed, though unfortunately, it’s all too easy to do. Cabin fever, as it sets in after the close of
deer season, usually lasting well into February and March, is a blinding
ailment. Sitting at home, wishing for
fishing and spring and a last chance at the buck you’ve stalked the season
long, it’s easy to overlook the work that must be done prior to spring’s
arrival; for once it has sprung, and idle world is set swiftly into motion, and
time is limited. You need to be
prepared.
So, as I am self-obliged, I form my “New
Year’s resolution” to maximize my proficiency on the water this coming year. I plan to begin, now, tying flies on a
schedule, organized by species, and season, so that I am prepared for each
phase of 2014. I plan to camp more,
spending more time in backcountry areas.
If possible, I would like to fish more often. And above all else, I will fish smarter, not
harder.
Now that that’s out of the way…
The Planning Stage
In taking to heart the time-old bit of
wisdom, work smarter, not harder, the idle time between Christmas and New
Year’s and the eventual restart of school is spent researching, planning,
mapping, and organizing trips in accordance with the seasons, weather patterns,
and fishing opportunities. Balancing
budgets for such trips, as well as several busy schedules makes planning a
challenge, but a very welcome one, considering the end result may be the fish
of a lifetime or a trip never to be forgotten.
Suddenly, though school is finally out for
a brief period, I enjoy homework again.
I start perusing guidebooks—Harry Murray’s Virginia Blue Ribbon Streams,
Beau Beasley’s Fly Fishing Virginia, Bob Gooch’s Virginia Fishing Guide, and
David Hart’s Fly Fisher’s Guide to Virginia—to identify areas of interest, and
in hopes of finding a previously-overlooked gem.
The areas of interest, and the trips from
last year that I hope to do again, along with the corresponding season get
scratched onto a piece of scrap paper by my desk. From there they are transferred to the
calendar, in messy scratchings in the margins.
Each destination is plugged into Google
Earth, routed, calculated for gas costs, and split between members of the
party. Lodging is arranged, and
accounted for in the budget, along with gas, though camping simplifies this
portion of the process.
Maps can be downloaded from the US
Geological Service website, or bought from MyTopo.com, and studied and filed
away for further examination.
Study on the subject of each trip is then
conducted. At the time I will be going,
what will the fish be feeding on? Those
lures, flies, and rigs, discovered on internet forums, revealed by local fly
shops, or already known are listed, either with the trip information, or
mentally, and bought, tied, and created on a deadline.
Such trip planning not only helps you have
your ducks in a row come time to fish in the spring, it can also serve as a
refresher course on know-how and biology.
If you know you will have to use a certain tactic somewhere you are
going later in the year to catch fish, practice it on short day trips close to
home in the off season. Practice
casting, tying flies, or shooting. This
can be a very exciting time of year.
Happy New Year!
Originally published in the Rural Virginian
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