It just doesn't matter....

[namekagon]

If it is true that it nothing matters as far as fish catching is concerned, then why we do we have this bulletin board to answer newbies questions on tackle and methods?

?Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.?
-Henry David Thoreau
It's a tad cerebral for me but maybe Thoreau is suggesting that by fishing we are simply attempting to transcend the limits of our own mortality.

[jszymczyk]

Good Lord. We Fly Fish simply because we ENJOY IT. All the holier-than-thou fly fishing philosophers write volumes about everything they can dream up, which is fine, but the bottom line is that we just like doing it. All of us on our different levels. In the end, that's what it boils down to.

Fly Fishermen in particular, and trout-centric FF'ers especially, love to get wrapped up in it all while losing sight of the simple underlying foundation that it is just FUN to do. Things which are FUN make our lives better.

[Byron haugh]

J,
What concerns you about folks who delve a great deal further than the average fly fisher?
In a way, it's a bit like golf. The occasional hacker enjoys it; the weekender enjoys it; and the guy who either plays or goes to the range 4-5 times a week enjoys it.