"I like some of your fly patterns." I said. "Some of them work
very well on the English Hampshire River Test."
"I'm so pleased." She said. "There's one that works well here
when the caddis (sedges - English translation) are on the water.
It's the Lady's Fish Finder
Fly. It's in our fly of the week archives. Give it a try."
You walk into these things don't you. You don't think.
It's all so innocent.
"I will." I said. "But I'll tie it in Blue dun and grey to
imitate some small sedges on the beats that I fish."
"That would be super." She said. "Let me know how you get on."
It was all so innocuous. Not a hint. "You could put it to the
test. Hmmm?" - She queried.
Right. OK. Put it to the test. That's the way it's going to
be is it - I thought.
All right I'll put it to the test and the Test.
Great. So I tied a couple and set forth to fish.
First snag.
This is a Lady's Fish Finder fly. I'm not a lady. Nope. I lose
out on that count. Do I hail some passing damsel and invite
her to use said fly to find a fish for me?
Possibly, but it could lead to interesting complications. And
the test has enough of those already. And so does the Test.
Well. Better press on alone and find a fish.
Ah. Another snag.
If I find a fish, how can the fish finder find one and prove
that it's a fish finder fly?
There's going to be a testing time for all here.
I need to find a fish in the Test so that I can put the fly to
the test - and the Test - to see if it works.
The test is not so clear now is it? (Early season rain run off
- Sorry - I got confused for a moment.)
All right I find a trout. It's a nice two pound Brown lying on
top of a patch of Starwort. Good.
I cast the Lady's Fish Finder fly to it. That is a test in
itself - believe me.
The trout rises and takes the fly. Surprised looks all round.
Right. So far so good.
But wait. Third snag.
Have we not just witnessed a fish find the fly (after I had found
the fish)? Not - as we surmised - the fly find the fish.
This is getting tricky.
Ah. But fourth snag. This is a Test trout. Does that make the
test invalid? Is there a flaw here?
If I had used a test trout which had been introduced into the
Test for the test, the fly would have been put to the Test and
the test trout thus attesting to it's ability to catch, if not
find, fish.
I'm going for a large Scotch!
The only thing that this has tested is my patience.
Still, I do like the fly. ~ Mike Pratt
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