Physician Heal Thyself

[Paul Boote]

A piece titled 'The Psychology of Fly-Fishing: Managing Frustration' here - The Psychology of Fly-Fishing: Managing Frustration | Orvis News

Oh the expectations, the overweening sense of entitlement, the disappointment and hurt pride and damaged masculinity when even $20,000's worth of kit, a small corps of guides, a jetboat and a chopper can't get you what you want, not merely now but 'like yesterday'....

Fly fishing, like a lot of other leisure activities now, become so results driven and pressurized that you might as well be at work.

For me, Extreme Tiddlywinks beckons.

 

[Paul Boote]

And here is some gent having a Grrrrouse about a lack of Grouse - Frozen food tycoon Alistair Erskine appeals to Supreme Court after leasing Castle Grant grouse moor only to find ‘small numbers of grouse’ - Home News - UK - The Independent

Reminds me of the 18-mile piece of South American sea-trout water that, together with three friends, I had the pleasure of scouting and experimentally flyfishing over several years in the early - mid 1990s. It was situated towards the top of end of a now very famous river, one whose windblown lower and middle reaches produce huge numbers of very large sea-trout with very little skill required from the several thousand £s a week visiting international sports that arrived in numbers every week to fish them.

Then one year it rained, rained for several days in the peak season period, a time when it "Simply just doesn't rain. Not now. Not here....".

The river was in brown flood and the downstream fishing lodges, each with 8 to 15 fish-expecting guests, were blown out.

Radio telephone rings at the upstream ranch at which I was staying as a personal guest of the owner - "Teddy, things are getting ugly down here ... the guests can't fish ... is your piece up there any clearer? ... is it fishable? ... can we bring our anglers up to fish with you for a few days...?".

Expectations, expectations....