1. It’s an accidental workout
A day spent on the river/lake/stream/insert-body-of-water-here is the best kind of incidental exercise. Forget the gym – why not swap the stairmaster for a rocky river bed or the body length mirror for the reflection off a glassy lake? There’ll be significantly more fresh air, which can only be a good thing for your lungs.
Sure, you can fly fish from a drift boat (don’t get us wrong, that’s also awesome) but if you want to work your core, try wading upstream through waist-deep water, against the current, pretending to be a fly for an entire day.
2. It’s a game of tactics
A good fly fisher constantly analyses the movements of the river, paying attention to the local bug life and educating themselves on fish feeding patterns. To increase your chances of catching a slippery little fella, every choice you make – from time of day to what fly to use on your line – will come into play.
Charley describes fly fishing as “one big puzzle,” explaining that “part of the fun is doing your best to piece the game together”. Trout spook easily, so in order to attract the fish it’s the caster’s job to perfectly imitate a food source or trigger an aggressive response. Imitating a caddis or nymph is harder than it looks, but that’s what makes the fishy prize even more satisfying.
