After the Rain
Remember the song, Blue Eyes Cryin' in the
Rain? Emmylou Harris did it, Roy Acuff also, Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson nailed it really
well, and others like Olivia Newton John, Elvis Presley & Hank Williams Jr. covered it too. It’s unlikely that any
of those folks ever fished for Atlantic salmon, because salmon anglers don’t cry in the rain. We rejoice and give thanks
because our prayers have been answered. Last Friday’s rain swelled salmon streams throughout most of Nova Scotia, especially
the Margaree River, which rose about two meters.
By Sunday,
after the flood subsides and the salmon ascend the rivers, fishing should be outstanding. If not, we’ll use the excuse
that the rain came just a bit early, but “just wait until the next good rain!”
Usually we can be confident that rain brings salmon if the timing is right. I recall a young angler asking a seasoned
veteran when the salmon would come. “They’ll come when it’s their time”, was his expert opinion.
Those who have never fished for Atlantic salmon simply cannot understand
the feeling. It’s like love. If we’ve never experienced love, how can we understand it? Only an artist or poet
can come anywhere close to explaining it. What do Atlantic salmon and salmon angling mean to us? Only we passionate salmon
anglers know the answer. Perhaps that’s why our governments fail the Atlantic salmon: they just can’t understand
its value.
That’s why we must make a business case for salmon angling. Everyone
understands money. When Atlantic salmon were fished commercially, governments knew and appreciated their value. Preserving
our environment is another well-understood issue, and salmon angling is green environmentally as well as economically. The
Atlantic Salmon Federation has reached the same conclusion. President Bill Taylor argues that while government funding favors
the aquaculture industry, salmon angling offers far greater economic benefit to rural communities. And aquaculture is far
from being sustainable or environmentally safe. One of Nova Scotia’s largest fish farms very recently lost a large proportion
of their fish to a self-created infestation of sea lice. Huge sea lice populations from aquaculture sites are known to kill
wild salmon smolts as they migrate to the ocean, a phenomenon observed worldwide, anywhere that’s home to wild salmon
stocks and fish farms. While solutions do exist, both our governments and the aquaculture industry refuse to acknowledge responsibility,
so the problem persists and grows. Wild Atlantic salmon and current fish farming methods simply cannot co-exist for long,
and, gradually, aquaculture is winning. But we can show our governments that far greater economic and social benefits result
from Atlantic salmon angling.
Here’s a salmon wet
fly by Antigonish angler Gerry Doucet, a design that combines the allure of a Buck Bug with the lifelike action of a marabou
fly. The summer, 2010 issue of the Atlantic Salmon Journal, features an article called “The Floodwater Fly”. Its
author, Halifax angler Raymond Plourde, reports that the Bugaboo produced well last fall in Antigonish County streams under
harsh conditions. Ray’s photography is stunning, coming very close to capturing the feeling we salmon anglers know so
well.
Bugaboo
Thread:
UTC G.S.P. 50 Denier thread
Hook:
Mustad 36890 salmon hook sizes 2-3/0, or Daiichi 2271 streamer hook, size 2
Tail:
Red duck quill section
Rear body:
None
Rear Hackle:
2-3 marabou plumes wound over middle third of hook shank, colors to suit, topped with a collar of pheasant rump, guinea
fowl or similar feather
Front body:
Dyed deer hair spun over front third of hook shank, color to suit, clipped “bomber/bug” style, bullet taper.
Front harkle: Cock
saddle, wound through clipped deer hair, color to suit.
Head:
Thread, color to suit, finished with 2 coats clear glossy head cement.
Please send comments and suggestions to slim@rivermagic.ca.
Please
stay on the line …