Fly Fishing and the creative experience

Above photo: One of my ferrule plugs that I turned for a customer in Italy.

Often, people ask me how one progresses from a mastery standpoint in the realm of fly fishing. If we are talking about the sport from a creative standpoint, we are not discussing expensive equipment, lavish destinations, and keeping up with the newest gizmos. Instead, let's discuss customizing the sport to fit your goals as a fly fisher, incorporating it into your daily, monthly, and yearly rituals. The concept of “mastery” is particularly relevant to me when considering time, creativity, and joy.

Fly fishing has become a more integral part of my lifestyle. As a craftsman who, over a lifetime, has incorporated graphic design, illustration, and landscape painting as a profession, I used fishing as a source of inspiration, creativity, ritual, and balance. I have always been inspired by my aquatic origins, having been born and raised in the Hawaiian Islands surrounded by water. Marine habitats and everything that revolves around them have been, and still are, a part of my daily routine. Growing up fishing, scuba diving, and surfing, I became curious out of necessity. My family has a history that spans three generations on the Big Island of Hawaii and Maui, with a legacy of Portuguese fisherman, ranchers, and paniolos (Hawaiian cowboys). Being outside is where I want to be.

Fly fishing really ignites the creative flow; there is curiosity sparked by aquatic insects, weather patterns, fish behavior, riparian ecology, and even the barometer becomes a whole conversation. If I were home in Hawaii, tide charts would be my most valuable asset. Discovery fuels mastery in the progression of the fly-fishing experience. 

Curiosity fuels my creativity, especially when it comes to fly tying, as an example. The ability to break free from conventional wisdom and invent is a hallmark of the artistic spirit. Rod making can be very technical, but it is also very experimental and liberating, knowing you have built your own tools. When you catch a fish on a rod you have made yourself, that's a game changer. Catching a fish on a fly that you have created is a simple yet evolutionary step toward mastery, and it's a beautiful and creative aspect of fly fishing.

Retail has a minimal impact on me in general, meaning the fly fishing industry does not significantly influence my lifestyle experience; I create my own pathway. Because I make my own rods, tie my own flies, and travel wherever and whenever I want under my own direction, all the commercial fly fishing “latest and greatest noise” has no relevance in my life, which is very liberating. It's this noise that you eventually shut out when you've reached a point where the ritual becomes instinctive and uniquely your own. Devoid of the influences of social media, large retailers, and snake oil innovation.

When I speak with customers, I strive to gain a deeper understanding of their needs and concerns. Often, I make suggestions that they haven't considered, and they end up acting on them, which is very fulfilling. I spend on average 70 to 120 hours on a single fly rod. So there is a lot at stake in my own court. If I sense that somebody wants a bamboo fly rod as a “shelf queen”, or worse yet, they are going to immediately resell it for more than what I sold it for, which I can smell from a mile away, I quietly back out. My rods are for fishing first and foremost. I have encountered many people trying to take advantage of me when it comes to getting a rod. The most common scam involves people telling me that there is a check in the mail and to go ahead and send the rod, when in fact, there is no check at all. This game gets old really quickly, and fortunately, I never bought into it. Now, my deposit for a rod is $500.00, non-refundable; this covers the material cost alone, so I can safeguard myself if someone backs out. People are generally results-oriented in today's society; they want everything to be done instantly. As a craftsman, this Amazon mentality is not our reality at all. I have simplified and creatively solved the issue of dealing with toxic customers. In turn, it's made me a happier rod maker because, for a while, it made me want to walk away from it completely. I have experienced every scam known to man when it comes to making custom rods. I have developed a sixth sense about customers over the course of more than two decades. I have managed to simplify and hone in on my target customer, avoiding scams and manipulative people, and I have stories that would make any craftsman hang up their tools and quit. There is a seedy underbelly to the fly fishing world, especially when it comes to larger retailers and especially social media forums. Forums are not trustworthy, as they often involve subversive egos. Forums lack focus and tend to be very biased in a passive-aggressive manner. Moderators play the role of politicians, and forums consume an excessive amount of oxygen and time. It's simply not a comfortable space for me. Not my circus, not my monkeys. Creativity is ignited by discovery and curiosity, so your best research is your own, from trial and error and testing everything yourself, not by some stranger in some thread. Everyone is different and has unique preferences, casting styles, fly selections, line preferences, aesthetic tastes, and types of water they fish; the list goes on and on. Fly fishing is very much like an artistic endeavor; much of it has to be expressed by you and you alone over time.

If you're curious and just getting into the sport of fly fishing, find a reliable and seasoned mentor in the flesh, plain and simple. One good, honest person is all you need, who is not trying to sell you something. A good local fly fishing shop is going to be “a friend in the know,” and being genuine and honest is a prerequisite. They do exist. Support your local fly shop; typically, they are great stewards for an industry full of large retailers that can lead one astray. We have one really good one here in Columbus that has been here since 1994, and they are a great group of guys who, honestly, hand over knowledge often for nothing in return, which is very admirable.

Simplify and focus your experience on your needs. What is going to make you happiest in the long run is having fun fishing and not worrying about the “latest and greatest” carbon fiber rod with Bluetooth, or a NASA-grade billet reel with a drag system that was developed by the US Navy. Orvis had an advertisement back in the early 1990s, a long time ago, for their Trident rods that soured me on the brand for life. It was an image of a nuclear Trident submarine, as though you were looking through a periscope at it in breach, with its newest Trident rod prominently displayed below it. The caption for the ad read “Only the Pentagon knows what makes the Trident rods so powerful.” It was the epitome of snake oil salesmanship and innovation manipulation.  

Keep it a creative adventure and keep it simple. If someone tries to make you believe fly fishing is all about complex innovation, they are trying to sell you on something. If someone tells you it's about levels of joy and simplicity, I would investigate them as potential friends in the know with an open mind. Remember, addition by subtraction is real. Time plus joy equals a great lifelong experience, allowing you to develop your own unique version of mastery.

                                             Much aloha ~Clint Bova