The past few Saturday mornings I have risen at 5:00 a.m. and in almost zombie like fashion found my way to the Clinch River for what has now become my Saturday morning routine of fly fishing. On this fine Saturday morning I would be taking my son up for what would be his first attempt at fly fishing. I vowed to spend one on one time with him on this trip showing him the nuances of the style of fishing I have grown to love.
A gentle nudge was all it took to wake Matthew this morning. I loaded up the truck with our gear while he ate the cereal I placed on the table. These are the times I wish I was more of a morning person, but in truth I'm not. Sure I can wake up when work or more importantly, fishing or hunting require it, but if left to my own devices I could sleep until 8:00 every day without fail. Neither Matthew nor I spoke much the first few miles of the drive, partly because I needed more coffee in me to start my motor, and Matthew was probably still half asleep. The silence gave away its hold on the morning when I told Matthew that no successful trip to the Clinch could begin without listening to my new found theme song as least one time. My brother-in-law James actually tuned me on to this song, but it's a song that should be in every fly fisherman’s music collection. The song is by Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers (yes....that Steve Martin). Steve Martin may have been The Jerk, but little did I know he is also one heck of a banjo player. I played the song "Yellow backed Fly" and Matthew and I both seemed to be optimistic about our trip. We arrived in the parking area and slipped into our waders and made our way down to the water. We were not the first people in the water, but we were ahead of the crowd so I felt good about the day. I want Matthew to enjoy fly fishing, but I'm also a realist. I didn't learn to fly fish in a day and neither will he. I guess I forget just how difficult some aspects of fishing can be for an eleven year old. We waded through the ankle deep water to the exposed rocks, but only hours ago these exposed rocks had water flowing over them and the algae was still present slowing down our progress. Speed was not the order of the day. We finally arrived at my favorite spot only to find another fisherman already firmly secure and casting away. We settled in upstream and began to fish.
It soon became clear that my plan to simply allow Matthew to cast (with my help) would not work. It took me practically an entire summer to learn how to cast and work a good drift and Matthew too will have to put in his time to learn. My new strategy was to try and catch as many fish as possible and let Matthew reel them in and net them. This plan was a better introduction to let Matthew feel the tug on the other end of the line and after an hour with no fish, I was beginning to wonder if even this plan would work. Finally the drought ended and I was able to land a Brown. Matthew worked the fish well and netted him with ease. Eventually we were able to work down river to fish with Matt P. and his father Tim. This is when the fishing was at its peak. We caught plenty of fish and Matthew was extremely happy with our results.
I looked across the river at Matt and Tim and I wondered how many outings like today's they have enjoyed. The friendship between father and son is apparent. When Matthew like Matt is married and expecting a child of his own, days like today are the memories I hope we can share. I wondered if perhaps Tim also looked at my Matthew and remembered when his Matthew (Matt) was just an eleven year boy wanting to fish with his father. These are the moments that bind us. All too soon Matthew will know the trials of adult life, but today we were simply a father and son enjoying the river and the gifts it had to offer. This wonderful day was capped off when I allowed Matthew to cast the fly rod by himself and his efforts were rewarded by a nice Rainbow that couldn't seem to resist the #16 San Juan worm we were fishing. Matthew later told me this was his favorite place to fish and the best trip he has ever been on. My hope is we can share many more together. Proverbs 22:6 says "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." I am doing my best Lord. I hope for Matthew's sake this includes fly fishing.
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