Guiding Miss Catherine

“Fishing is not like billiards, in which it is possible to attain a disgusting perfection.”

—Arthur Ransome, “On Giving Advice to Beginners”, 1929

I have been a patient of Dr. Jonathan Leffert for the past eleven years. He has been expertly controlling my thyroid problem. During my yearly visits he has listened to my ramblings on the joys of fly fishing. In 2006 while enjoying a brief vacation at Big Sky in Montana, he and his young daughter Catherine went fly fishing. Wisely, Dr. Leffert employed an experienced guide. He and his daughter caught trout from a tributary of the Gallatin River. This whetted their desire to learn the art of fly fishing. At my November visit last year, the doctor asked me to assist him in buying equipment. I jumped at the chance. What can be more fun than shopping for fly fishing gear? Especially when you are spending someone else’s money.

At the March meeting of the Dallas Flyfishers, Chuck Sabolovic learned that Catherine did not yet have a fly rod. He graciously gave one of his to the young lady. The Lefferts are learning that fly fishers wear white cowboy hats. They were ready to go fly fishing, right now! Several club members had mentioned they had enjoyed success at the Elm Fork of the Trinity below Lake Lewisville. I decided to take them there.

Saturday morning, March 31 found the three of us peering at the flow of the Elm Fork. In her child’s vest and perfect-fitting, felt-bottomed boot-foot waders, Catherine looked every inch a fly fisher. To my eye the stream looked very low and a bit off color. Under these conditions, I expected that the stocked trout would be found in the deeper pools. With the discolored water, we should be able to work quite close to the fish. This was important for Catherine. One quick lesson from Ken Cole was not enough for her to have developed a casting stroke.

We fished one pool for an hour with a variety of flies with no success. This despite the fact that the pool contained an occasionally rising trout. At length, we moved upstream to another pool, which had good depth. Since Catherine’s casting range was limited, I thought perhaps a nymph might bring results. She tried a small, #18 Copper John. Catherine does not yet understand line control, which left lots of slack line between her and the fly. I did not wish to be barking instructions at her on every cast for fear of taking the fun out of the fishing. The point where the leader went beneath the surface became my focus. Finally, what I was hoping for occurred. That part of the leader stopped. Then it moved slightly upstream.

“Catherine,” I hollered, “you’ve got one. Lift the rod and start reeling.” She managed to get the trout almost to us when it flipped off the hook. My tiny companion was the picture of despair. This near success caused me to rethink.

Off came the little nymph to be replaced by a #14 Roan Antelope hair beetle. From the bend of the beetle’s hook, I added two feet of leader material and retied the Copper John giving her a “tango” to fish with. I explained to her that the beetle would serve as her “bobber.” If it went under or moved upstream, she should try to strike at once. Several casts later, the beetle suddenly sank from sight. She struggled with the excess slack, tightened the line and a rainbow was solidly hooked. This one was beached. Proud father and happy guide both took pictures to record Catherine’s triumphant moment. Whew, it had been a near thing, but my guide’s license will not be revoked.

For some time now I have been concerned by a trend whereby big money buys a part or all of a public trout stream and makes the water available to members only. This has been occurring both in the far West and the East. For Easteners there has been some recent good news. The Spring Ridge Club, a group that has sought to shut out the public from a stretch of water on the Little Juniata River, was slapped down by a Pennsylvania judge. This ruling came from Judge Stewart Kurtz, who ruled that the Little Juniata River was navigable and therefore should be open to the public. Three cheers for Judge Kurtz.