I fish because I love to because I love the environs where trout are found which are invariably beautiful;
because , my fishing is at once an endless source of delight and an act of small rebellion;
because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness;
because bourbon out of an old tin cup always tastes better out there;
because maybe one day I will catch a mermaid;
and, finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important,
but because I suspect that so many other concerns of men
are equally unimportant
and not nearly so much fun.
~ Robert Traver
The good words of the Michigan judge pretty much summed it up for me except I sometimes wondered about the "mermaid." Although times are changing women on a trout stream are still somewhat rare. Surprising in a way, because you see it is a "gentle sport."
The fly-fishing version of it especially belongs to people who like to walk. From riffle to pond to run and on to the next riffle.
The farther from the road you go the fishing can only get better and better.
There is an etiquette involved in this movement as well. You don't expect to see other people but sometimes it happens. The rules are:
(1) If they are actively fishing a stretch of stream, "DO NOT DISTURB." This can spook the fish they are casting to and really piss them off. They were there first.
(2) Your choices are to wait till they finish and move on or leave the stream and pass around them at a sufficient distance that they don't even know you went by.
