getting in the zone

Winter is finally here, we had our first snow flurries today and it’s guaranteed more will come soon. The temperature is crawling down pretty low (26F/-3C) but always feels much colder than it actually is. Each winter, just as the cold really hits, I go through a mental adjustment to get comfortable with the cold.

I remember the days before I really got into fishing, wondering why the hell these guys would stand in sub zero weather to chase fish they were not going to keep. How insane that looked, and contradicting to the whole idea of fishing, which is supposed to be relaxing. I sometime still ask myself that as I try to tie on a fly, my fingers barely working and the cold wind piercing right through my face…but those questions fade away as quickly as they came. I sometime see people taking walks around where I fish, and I know they are thinking what I thought before.

As the lakes freezes over and the river edges gets narrower each day with ice, I say to myself – this year, I’ll spend more time at the tying bench and really get the flies to be “right”. I don’t really believe that, but I say it anyways and I’m pretty sure that my flies will never be right. I’m not an old man, but each winter I am getting older and that should slow me down in the winter. But then again, each year they are coming out with new gear that keeps us warmer and drier. Plus the built up knowledge of knowing how to dress for the cold weather keeps me out there longer each year.

I took a stroll up to Milwaukee river to check out the conditions up there. It was cold, empty, and quiet...just the way I like it. I hope to post some photos of fish from here soon. So winter is here, but I feel prepared and I don’t think I’ll be putting away tackle.

I hope I feel this way for as long as I can do this. Remember guys, as the old saying goes – there is no bad weather, just bad clothing.