Harvey Gives a Few Pointers

By Chip Chipman 

Harvey pulled up in front of the house in his old Ford pickup. I put my gear in the back and climbed into the cab. Harvey was my fly fishing mentor when I was a youngster.  

“Now, are you sure you have all your stuff? He asked. 

“Yep.” 

“Rod, reel, leaders, flies, lunch?”

“Be right back.”

I ran into the house and got my lunch out of the refrigerator. Some things never change.    

As I was getting back into the truck, Anita walked by with her little dog. She smiled and said good morning.  

“Harvey said, “Is she your girlfriend?” 

“No she isn’t.” 

“It must be nice to be at an age when your girlfriends still have all their teeth,” said Harvey, as much to himself as to me. Harvey put the old truck in gear and remarked, “It’s getting breezy.” 

We were on our way to a lake that held small mouth bass. We would be fishing from the rocky shore. The wind had picked up considerably by the time we got to the lake. To fish the area we wanted we would have to cast into the wind. It would be my first time fly-fishing in windy conditions. 

I made a few false casts and released the line. The line and fly were blown back to me. The fly landed a few feet in front of me. I tried again. The result was the same. 

Harvey didn’t miss any of this. “ I think you need a few pointers.” 

“ I’d say so,” I agreed. 

“When you’re casting into the wind keep your loops tight. This develops more line speed. Aim your cast a foot or so above the water. The line, leader, and fly will straighten before the wind can have any adverse affect on them. Nothing to it.” 

“How do you keep the loops tight?” 

“Good question. I guess I haven’t explained that to you. The distance the rod tip moves rapidly at the end of the cast, combined with a quick stop determines the size of the loop. If you accelerate the rod tip through a two- foot arc you will have a two -foot wide loop, if you accelerate through a three foot arc you will have four- foot loop.” 

I must have had a blank look on my face. 

“ Look,” Harvey said, “Just keep your casting arc short but fast and come to quick stops. That will give you a tight loop. With a little experience, you’ll be able to throw any size loop you want. Remember not to break your wrist, it’s all forearm movement.” 

Soon, I began to get the hang of it. “Hey Harvey, this same casting technique will work when I want to get under brush and stuff won’t it? 

“Now you’re thinking boy,” said Harvey.