The Promise of the Solstice

Becoming a fly fisher almost always means becoming a nature worshiper, no matter what spiritual bent we ‘ve assumed. Even if we chose not to engage with anything beyond a fly rod and fish, we become bound to the cycles of nature. So fly fishers have something more to celebrate this time of year. In the northern hemisphere, it is the lengthening of days. In New Zealand and Patagonia right now, it is the mellowing of summer. Either way, it’s about a return: an about-face of the sun. The shift to the south is over and migrations reverse. Along the ridges of Central and North America, birds begin their 12-mile-a-day progress north. Tarpon note the subtle lengthening of days and start sniffing out the possibilities in distant inshore basins, having lost their fear of sudden freezes. In streambeds and river bottoms around the world, insects start listening for a different set of clues. Errant steelhead think twice about home. If we lived every day out-of-doors, we’d be clued in to it all. Our holidays, instead, are as close to a reminder as most of us get.
So we have a very short list of wishes in mind for MidCurrent readers as this year rolls to an end and a new one begins. The first is that you enjoy the celebration of new beginnings that binds us all together. The second is that you’ll begin making room for more fishing in your schedule this year. There’s no better time to be fishing than right now. At MidCurrent, we believe that the preservation of things that make fly fishing possible depends on folks going out and fishing. Respect begins with awareness, and awareness comes with practice. We appreciate your reading MidCurrent while you’re waiting for your waders to dry out or for the sun to rise, but most of all we want you to go out and fly fish. There’s nothing quite like being there.
Happy holidays from MidCurrent.