“Time Passes Slowly” (#1 Alternate Version) – Bob Dylan

Slow down.

It’s the advice you’ll get from every wellness guru, soccer mom, licensed therapist, tavern philosopher or eastern mystic. A cure-all for our modern times. Too stressed, too busy, too angry, too much, too many.

Just slow down.

Solid advice, sure, but none of them tell you exactly how.

This world seems to be spinning so fast and some of those moderns ills seem to spill over to our time on the water as well. All of us rushing around, fishing as if it’s a combat sport. 

I sure haven’t quite figured out how to slow down off the water, but I’ve figured out a few solid tips for on the water

1) Open toed sandals. 

Nothing will slow you down like the threat of injury.

2) Look up

While you’re looking down to make sure you don’t end up with a gash that requires 7 stitches on your big toe, remember to take time to look up. Fishing takes places in some of the prettiest landscapes on the planet, there’s often mountains, birds, flowers, fauna, steep canyon walls to take a look at it.  Might as well stop and catch a glimpse every once in a while.

3) Look around

One you’ve looked up, bring a long a little pocket guidebook to learn a little about what you’re looking at. Learning more about the ecosytem you’re walking through helps us appreciate the greater entirety of the experience. Plus it never hurts to know which mushrooms are tasty and which will make you vomit for three days.

4) More beers than fly boxes. 

You should have more beers (alcoholic or otherwise) on your person than you do fly boxes.  If you end up not having that #20 trico pattern that the riser in that seam is eating, you’ll be ok. You aren’t feeding your family with that fish, only your ego.  

5) Go for a swim.

Strip down and get in, it’s good for your soul.  Plus it’ll wash away some of the funk if you’re one of these masochists wearing a full wader setup in the middle of July.  

6) Leave the camera, go pro, drone and film crew behind.  

Honestly, we can all do a better job of leaving the documentation equipment behind.  I’m aiming for a 50/50 split with and without a camera this year, at a minimum. Fishing is already a good time, see how good it is when you’ve got nothing to prove to anyone but yourself. Plus its better for the fish and in the end it will be better for all of us.

*Bonus advice: bring a young bird dog.

You’ll probably stop fishing and start throwing sticks in the water to work on retrieves, if that dogs going to be swimming through the holding water anyway.