An angler who doesn’t catch any fish, because he uses only dry flies the size of dandruff, often conceitedly refers to himself as a purist. Other anglers refer to him as a loon. Patrick F. McManus Rubber Legs and White Tail-Hairs
Old fishermen never die; instead they write books about their passion, usually couched in a mournful, elegiac, Thoreauesque prose — withal larded with a sort of dogged jocularity — that old fishermen seem helplessly bound to employ when they put down rod and take up pen and look back on Read more…
What it is, is this: after decades of fishing you come to realize that you live in a house made entirely of desire. Michael Delp The Coast of Nowhere
It’s just that good fishing doesn’t last forever, but the day-to-day reaping and sowing does. They say the idea is to sacrifice your enthusiasms in order to get ahead, but ahead of what? John Gierach No Shortage of Good Days
Clearly then, this cannot be about fishing; fishing is a way of keeping your balance as you wade upstream. Wayne Fields What the River Knows: An Angler in Midstream
People ask me, “Does fishing help reduce stress?” Being the savvy, cautious scientist whose ethical responsibilities include never misleading the public about health research, my answer is always the same: “Not if you’re a fish.” Paul Quinnett Pavlov’s Trout
Fishing, I should have explained, teaches us to perform small acts with care. It humbles us. It enriches our friendships. It cultivates reverence for wild things and beautiful places. It reminds us that time needs occasionally to be squandered. Jerry Dennis The River Home