Yesterday’s memories

Yesterday the latest issue of the magazine, American Angler, arrived at our mailbox. I always enjoy reading the articles in this periodical, which bills itself as, “the magazine of fly fishing and fly tying.” This issue had the usual mix of items. There were articles on where to fish in Wyoming, Quebec and Maryland. Then there were recipes for tying several types of flies that trout would absolutely eat, even if they were not hungry. I’ll have to tie some of those. All interesting stuff to a fly fisher. However, the article that really struck a chord for me was on the very last page. It was titled, “Only Yesterday,” by William G. Tapply. This gentleman not only writes books and articles on fly fishing, but he is also the author of the Brady Coyne series of murder mysteries. He comes by his writing ability quite naturally as his dad wrote the popular column, “Taps Tips,” in Field and Stream magazine back in the 50’s and 60’s. In this most recent article Tapply extols the benefits of keeping a fishing log each time you have been on the water. To quote Tapply, “The value of a journal is that it keeps memories alive and vivid. The older we get, we cherish these memories, and the more help we need in summoning them up.” No truer words were ever written.

I cannot recall what possessed me to begin keeping a log of each time I went fishing. Never the less, I have been doing this since 1949. If I fished for 30 minutes or an entire day, I have a record of that fishing trip.

The earliest fishing days I recorded were April 23 and 24, 1949. At the time I was only 19 years old. For the 23 of April the log records that I fished the Peekskill Hollow Brook. I fished with worms and failed to catch a fish. You can see the results were not all that different from how I fare today. I noted that a muskrat surfaced right in front of me and nearly died of fright.

The following day I fished the same brook. An 11-and three-quarter-inch brook trout ate my worm. I had him for lunch. You may note two things that the record reveals. One, I was very precise in measuring my fish. Two, my trout fishing back then was done exclusively with bait. As the years passed I gradually came to fish only with a fly. In the transition period of my fishing methods I caught trout on worms, salted minnows, live minnows and a variety of spinning lures. I slowly came to realize that fly fishing was a more satisfying and most fun way to catch a fish.

If I had not begun to keep a fishing log back in 1949 that little muskrat would have been forgotten long ago. Instead, I can still recall the look of consternation and fright on the little fellow when his head popped above the current in that small brook, suddenly to find himself within four feet of a human. I can also remember the pride I felt, as I hiked back up George Fisher’s hill towards my parent’s bungalow, bringing home my freshly caught trout. I could hardly wait to show off my prize to my mom and dad.

All of my fishing logs contain many photographs of the years fishing. Simply by leafing through different years I can watch my children growing up all over again. Barb often teases me that nearly all of the pictures of our children from the time they were infants on up have a trout stream in the background. Year by year they grow taller until one by one they disappear from the logs, as they marry and leave home. Being able to view these photos and read the happenings of the day brings back a rush of pleasant memories. I am always a bit surprised to realize that the children in these photos are now in their 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. That startling fact brings to mind the Tennessee Williams’ line, “Time flies so fast, no one can outrun it.”

I will admit that some days, after bucking the currents all day long, writing up the days’ events seemed to be a chore. However, when I look back on events in these logs that occurred long ago, I am grateful that I took the time to record them. If you have not been keeping a journal or log of your fishing experiences, I urge you to start one this season. You will be pleasantly surprised how much you will enjoy reading them, out in the distant future. It is not too late to start.

If you would like to learn the latest scoop on where the trout are biting, may I suggest you drop in on the April 28 meeting of Trout Unlimited, which will be held at McFadden’s Fly Shop, Route 97, Hankins, New York, at 7:30 p.m. Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Our meetings are always open to the public.

For the flyfisher, “the sweet of the year” is nearly upon us. By the time you read this, the Hendrickson may fly will probably be hatching. They will be followed by the March Brown, Grey Fox, Light Cahill, Pale Evening Dun and all the other great hatches between now and the end of June. Therefore, the Tangler’s motivational thought for the day is, mow the lawn tomorrow, go fishing today!