Oftentimes the question comes up in conversation, " Why do you fish?" The implied, but always unasked question is, "What makes a reasonably intelligent man like you go whacko over slimy little fish; spending countless hours, traveling hundreds or even thousands of miles; spending your hard-earned money on fur, feathers, and ridiculously expensive fishing poles; and you don't even bring home fish to eat?"
There is no simple answer that can be given over the dinner table or at a cocktail party. Fortunately deceased judge, author and fly fisherman John Voelker was able to articulate it for many of us who are hooked on fly fishing.
The Credo
“I fish because I love to; because I love the environs where trout are found, which are invariably beautiful, and hate the environs where crowds of people are found, which are invariably ugly; because of the television commercials, cocktail parties and assorted social posturing I thus escape; because, in a world where most men seem to spend their lives doing things they hate, my fishing is at once an endless source of delight and an act of small rebellion; because trout do not lie or cheat but respond only to quietude and humility and endless patience; because I suspect that men are going along this way for the last time, and I for one don't want to waste the trip; because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness; because bourbon out of an old tin cup tastes better out there; because maybe someday I will catch a mermaid; and, finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant - and not nearly so much fun.
John Voelker”
There is no simple answer that can be given over the dinner table or at a cocktail party. Fortunately deceased judge, author and fly fisherman John Voelker was able to articulate it for many of us who are hooked on fly fishing.
The Credo
“I fish because I love to; because I love the environs where trout are found, which are invariably beautiful, and hate the environs where crowds of people are found, which are invariably ugly; because of the television commercials, cocktail parties and assorted social posturing I thus escape; because, in a world where most men seem to spend their lives doing things they hate, my fishing is at once an endless source of delight and an act of small rebellion; because trout do not lie or cheat but respond only to quietude and humility and endless patience; because I suspect that men are going along this way for the last time, and I for one don't want to waste the trip; because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness; because bourbon out of an old tin cup tastes better out there; because maybe someday I will catch a mermaid; and, finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant - and not nearly so much fun.
John Voelker”
