5 Mindfulness Practices to Integrate into your Fly Fishing Experiences

 It’s no new revelation that fly angling lends itself to being that of a greatly therapeutic sport. There are countless long standing organizations such as Casting for Recovery, Project Healing Waters, and The Mayfly Project to name just a few, many of whom for decades have devoted their entire mission to the cause of facilitating space for people to heal through the medium of fly angling. Volumes of literary works have been written that speak to the deeper experiences that we encounter on the water, and perhaps even more so now, the fact that many of us are indeed fishing for something much greater than the fish themselves has become increasingly mainstream over the past several years.

This points to two things: our collective need to connect more with ourselves, and our collective need to connect more with the natural world. It’s probably safe to say that most of us could always use more real and tangible connection in community with one another, too. Fly fishing facilitates all of the above and then some. It’s powerful in and of itself, and manages to offer an abundance of physical, psychological, and inter-personal benefits as it stands. I sometimes wonder if that pull I feel to get out onto the river is actually being generated by the many systems of my mind and body that are coyly reminding me that I need some time moving and breathing in the outdoors. I typically tend to abide, and surely always leave feeling a little bit better than when I arrived. 

One of the characteristics that makes fly angling so appealing and keeps us so engaged and interested is its expansive and wide reaching scope. There are always more fly patterns to learn how to tie, new water and species to be explored, and a different casting technique to attempt to master. In the spirit of enjoying the richness of our ever evolving time spent as anglers, there are all sorts of interesting and beneficial ways to shift our perspective and even intention while we’re out getting a line wet, too. While fly fishing has long been compared to various schools of thought such as yoga and taoism, it really does stand alone as its own very unique and well-rounded wellness practice.

With that, for those who’re looking to incorporate some additional layers while on the water and in the woods, there are myriad mindfulness focused gestures to pepper in when the day calls for an extra dose of connection with ourselves and our environment. Here are just a few…

Breath Awareness. 

We all just so happen to be breathing all day long, which in turn means that we have this really great tool sitting at our fingertips at any given moment. Engaging in breath awareness can be approached many ways depending upon the individual and what they’re hoping to achieve. The simple act of paying attention to our breathing can, for some, be an incredibly grounding practice. It helps to bring us into the present moment in a clear and accessible way, and it offers a rhythmic focal point.

Try: Breath counts. Recent research shows that six nasal breaths per minute is optimal for our health, of which each breath is composed of a five second count for the inhale, and a five second count for the exhale. Next time you’re arrived at a run and have committed yourself to say three or so minutes to pause and observe(of which is almost always a good idea), incorporate a counted breath practice that includes twenty breaths utilizing this pattern. It’s fantastic for your nervous system and overall focus, and will help round out that time spent slowing down and taking stock before tying on a fly and taking your first cast.

Mindful Movement. 

No fancy pretzley postures needed here. The simple act of moving mindfully(as in paying attention to our movement) is really beneficial in and of itself. A great starting point is to simply slow down. Rather than rushing to get to the next section of water or charging ahead to the opposite bank, take more methodical and intentional steps. Experiencing the basic quality of walking is an excellent way to better inhabit our bodies and even get out of our heads a bit.

Try: While wading, use the gait pattern of a forefoot strike in each step before lowering down to the heel. This method of walking(and wading) is ideal while moving through variable and uneven terrain, and oftentimes helps to mitigate those slips and falls that we’re not too terribly fond of. Make note that the forefoot isn’t the toes, but instead the ball mounds just beneath them. It’s the widest portion of our feet and provides the greatest surface area to create a stable stance before completing each step with an eventual heel strike. 

Sensory Mapping. 

One of the better known mindfulness methods out there is that of “mapping” our senses. You can choose one sense or indulge in several within sequence of one another. For example, at any given moment throughout the day, pause to make note of what you’re experiencing from a sensory perspective. Consider any smells, tastes, sounds, colors, textures, temperatures, and any and all physical sensations that are present. A nice way to approach sensory mapping is to take a moment to pause at a new run on the river. Because we’re typically already attune to the practice of stopping to read the water, adding in a couple more sensory distinctions can help to elevate our observational practice while offering additional opportunity to slow down and tune in.

Try: Upon arrival(or while in motion) engage your sense of listening. See if you can distinguish sounds that are present to the North, then South, then East, then West of you. Some even choose to take pen to paper to sketch what they’re hearing from each direction in the form of an actual “sensory map”.

Intention Setting. 

Intention setting, in its essence, is similar to creating a goal, but it tends to veer away from the idea of performance. In other words, it’s an opportunity to consider how one might shape their perspective, while removing any pressure of necessarily needing to “achieve” anything in particular. It serves as a central point of focus, but it remains flexible rather than rigid. The question of “why did I choose to come here today” can be a solid launching point. The obvious answer of “to fish” is oftentimes sitting on the more superficial layer. While digging a bit deeper, you may uncover answers like “to relax, to be somewhere quiet, to explore some place new, to spend time with a friend”, etc. Understanding how we’re showing up on any given excursion and what we’re hoping to experience can help inform where we go, the pace with which we move, and how we approach the day as a whole. And if the intention simply is to feel the tug of a fish on your line(a perfectly reasonable intention), well then best to head to a spot where you’re fairly certain you’ll connect with a couple.

Try: Once you’ve gotten to your destination give yourself a minute or two to take an inventory before moving ahead. Complete a brief scan of your body and determine how you’re feeling from a physical perspective, gaining awareness of areas where you may feel sore, fatigued, or tense. Make note of your energy level, stress level, emotional body, and how your headspace is feeling. Getting a clear picture of the lay of your own personal landscape is a great starting point to help inform your best course of action as you venture ahead.

Gratitude Scanning. 

The word gratitude tends to evoke images of self-help books and motivational quotes plastered across corporate posters, but the fact remains: taking the time to actually acknowledge areas of gratitude can have a serious impact on our overall perspective, mindset, feelings of well-being, and literal brain matter. It’s incredibly simple, yet is oftentimes completely overlooked and underutilized within our daily thought patterns. What’s more, when we become habituated to certain persons, places, or things, we can pretty easily fall victim to the act of taking them for granted.

Try: Book-ending your outings on the water with a very simple gratitude scan that includes identifying two things that you’re grateful for upon arrival, and two different things that you’re grateful for upon departure. There are no rules, they can literally be anything. You can choose to write them down, take photographs, or just plain think on them for a few moments. 

It should go without saying that not every day spent angling need-be composed of a whole lot of extra anything. In fact I might argue that one of the greatest things about fly fishing is that it frequently offers a space that’s stripped down, simplified, and relatively free of the to-do lists that often govern our daily lives. Time in nature not thinking about a whole lot else other than the rod in our hand and the bugs skirting through the brush is at times just what the doctor ordered. There are plenty of other times where exuberantly cheering our friends on while they land a fish can lift our spirits and be about as good as it gets.

Regardless of the context, incorporating more mindfulness here and there will invariably enhance our time exploring. The best part? The more often that we integrate these really basic practices into our lives, the more they become just like muscle memory, woven into the fabric of our experiences, much like the way that we read water, seat our knots, and pause to watch while our fish kick off and swim away. 

The Physical Feat of Landing, Handling, and releasing our Fish with care

For the budding new angler or those who tend to hit the water with guides or buddies more often than not, you may be in for a bit of a surprise when first realizing that netting your own fish can wind up being the greatest feat of the day. While we’ve been fortunate in more recent years to have excellent organizations like Keep Fish Wet leading the charge in safe fish handling education, implementing the methodology just might greet you with a few unexpected asks from your physical self. Executed with ease and maybe even taken for granted by some, plenty surely find that there’s more to it than meets the eye while navigating a solid landing, handling, and release. Here’s the lowdown on some of the physical elements that help to pull off a solid landing and release, along with a few tips that you can implement into your daily life to help keep your body moving well while you care for your fishy friends.

1: Shoulder Mobility- It should go without saying that we utilize a fair amount of shoulder mobility while we cast. What may be a little less obvious is the extent to which we typically need to move our rod handling arm into shoulder flexion(arm high above the head) while netting our own fish. Maintaining well moving shoulders is essential, most notably while netting and landing our fish. TRY: Shoulder CARs(controlled articular rotations) are one of the best ways to go about building and maintaining range of motion and control within the shoulder girdle. With the option of executing shoulder CARs from a variety of positions(seated, standing, tall kneeling, or in a quadruped position), incorporating a quick set of controlled rotations daily will help to keep this joint complex moving well.

2: Reaching- With the lift of our rod comes an even longer reach with our net handling limb. Reaching requires coordination between the shoulder blade, shoulder capsule, entire arm, and it tends to incorporate a certain degree of spinal mobility as well. Keeping all of the above in at least decent working order will suit us well on the water and within our regular daily life activities. TRY: A great way to stack some movements together is to incorporate single arm or two armed reaches into a variety of seated positions while on the floor. Try sitting cross legged and reaching forward, overhead, and from side to side, and repeat with the opposite leg in front. Other floor sitting positions to explore include both legs stretched out ahead, straddled legs, and any type of squat. Feel free to place a yoga block, bolster, or blanket/pillows underneath your seat to help make floor sitting more accessible. Bonus points for adding in some trunk rotation to keep your spinal health on the up and up, too.

3: Grip Strength- And I’m not talking about death gripping your fish. Please don’t. While some may choose to use a hands-free release, it’s oftentimes ideal to have a rubber net handy. While over-gripping is generally unnecessary, maintaining healthy hands and wrists goes a very long way while we’re managing the many moving parts that is releasing our fish(and definitely supports many other areas where fly angling is concerned). Even just the act of hanging onto our net handle can be a bit of a project if our hands aren’t quite up for the task. TRY: Similar to your shoulder CARs that we went over above, daily wrist rotations through your full range of motion is a great way to keep wrists mobile. The idea behind the controlled articular rotations is that they’re executed slowly and methodically. Try three rotations moving clockwise, followed by three moving counter-clockwise. Squeeze a tennis ball in your palm while doing them to add in some grip strength work.

4: Lower Body Mobility- Perhaps one of the greater challenges for many is the ability to get low enough to the water to remove your fly and release your fish, all while keeping your fish wet. A lack of mobility in your ankles, knees, and hips can pose some challenges. I typically find that my best course of action while keeping my fish submerged during a netting and release is to lower into some degree of a squat. A healthy and mobile lower body can be really helpful in these circumstances, and can also contribute to checking water temperatures when needed, too. TRY: Incorporating some floor sitting into your daily routine is a fantastic and kinda unsuspecting way to help build and maintain a certain level of lower body mobility. It requires us to regularly shift our hips, knees, ankles, and pelvis throughout a variety of angles while we change positions, resulting in spending more time within diverse orientations. Feel free to sit on top of blankets or cushions if accessing the floor feels difficult on its own, and if you feel that you’ll need a little extra aid to get back up again, sitting next to a piece of furniture or something that’s stable can be useful. If sitting on the floor is a no-go for you, try regularly changing the way that you sit in chairs or on the couch. Bend and straighten your knees and hips in a variety of ways, and add some ankle CARs into the mix while you’re at it, too. Aim to spend at least 30 minutes a day on the floor if you’re able.

5: Balance & Proprioception- We’re reaching, pivoting, squatting, and gripping. Frequently all taking place while standing inside of a moving body of water. Within the chaos and victory of the moment, don’t forget that you still need to keep your feet beneath you. Being able to remain steady within movement is the very definition of stability. Balance and spatial awareness are key.  TRY: A super simple way to work on overall balance is to incorporate some sustained single leg balancing into your daily life. While just standing on one leg is a great way to begin, as you become more comfortable add in some movement to give your body the opportunity to respond and re-stabilize within an unstable environment. I love to explore some swings with my lifted leg, reaches with my arms, and even some hip hinges down towards the ground, all while balancing on one foot. Don’t be shy about using a wall or other stable surface for some support while you progressively increase your balance abilities over time.

Surprisingly enough, safely handling your fish while returning them to the water may actually leave you with all sorts of unexpected and unintentional mobility gains. Keep those rod tips lifting and your squats plenty low! Likewise, if you’re looking for motivation to work on some of your movement and mobility capacity while off of the water, becoming a more ethical and mindful angler seems to be as good a reason as any. Your joints and your fisheries will surely thank you.

The Top Ten Things that I Love about Fly Fishing(that have nothing to do with catching fish)

I think most anyone who’s spent a decent amount of time on the water will agree that at some point we realize that fly fishing is about so much more than catching fish. This topic has been the focal point of countless literary works over many decades; what we find while we’re out looking for fish on the fly is the realization that we’ve stepped into a depth of experience that’s rarely matched by other sports. Many shy away from even referring to fly angling as a sport, and will more often liken it to an expression and experience of lived art. As we become increasingly engaged with our medium, what tends to grow is the desire to slow down, become a more keen observer, and absorb the details of our ecosystem more thoroughly. The joy and exhilaration of connecting with a fish on the fly is unique and fantastic in and of itself. And how lucky are we in knowing that there’s so much more to this practice than the fishing alone? Following is a short list of the top ten things that I love about fly fishing that have nothing to do with catching fish…

1-Bird Watching: The scavenging, hunting, calling, mating, and swooping down to swipe a fish right out of the water.⁣ Spending time returning to the same water throughout the seasons has allowed for me to witness the process of many species of birds nesting and nurturing their young. Bald eagles have always been a favorite. What a spectacular piece of nature to bear witness to. 

2-Foraging & Identifying Plants: I began foraging prior to my introduction to fly fishing, but needless to say the two effortlessly complement one another. Discovering and identifying edible/medicinal plants while out exploring fisheries is such a delight. Likewise, learning how to better identify more plants, trees, and wildflowers even without harvesting is an intricate layer to the experience of being outdoors. 

3-Walking & Moving in Nature: The amount of evidence that points to the positive physical and psychological effects that accompany simply being in the outdoors is enormous. I became so enthralled with the biomechanics of fly angling and exploring these wild places that I created an entire mindful movement method devoted to it. It’s a fascinating subject, and one where there’s always room for more exploration and evolution while we discover what it means to move well in the outdoors. 

4-Witnessing Bugs Hatch: I’m not sure that I ever noticed hatches taking place before I began fly fishing, and of course now they’re impossible not to see whether I’m out on a fishing excursion or not. What a neat and detailed process, to begin to understand the entire life-cycle of these insects as they relate to the seasons and varied ecosystems that we explore. 

5-Watching Wildlife at Work: I love witnessing the progress of beaver dams, nests, dens, beehives and abandoned beds. ⁣Sharing space with countless creatures and species that call these environments home always means that there’s so much taking place and to be seen within any stream, lake, forest, and field. 

6-Snack Breaks: And not just while on the water, but also within the ritual of carefully selecting and gathering the days tastes and treats, securely tucking them away in anticipation of a moment later to come.⁣ Whether alone or in the company of others, those times where we locate a good log to perch on while nibbling on a sandwich or pulling out our portable french press to make a fresh batch of coffee are always a special and integral part of the experience. 

7-Observing the Change in Light: From sun-up to sundown, whether it’s a blue bird day or one that’s overcast with diffused light. The golden hours are always tough to beat, but the entire days sequence of light as well as the warmth that it produces impacts how we feel and the paths that we choose to wander.

8-Watching Fish Rise: The slow emerger nips, the aggressive terrestrial nabs, and of course those vertical acrobatic caddis fly launches. While it can be challenging to not immediately cast to rising fish, the skillful angler and observer understand the value of pausing first. Over time I’ve found that sitting down and watching rises with a beverage in hand can be just as satisfying as the fishing itself.

9-The Wide World of Aromas: The fresh pine needles, wildflowers, sagebrush, grasses, soil, and manure all have their own unique scents to be experienced and enjoyed. As we know, our sense of smell has the strongest ability to trigger both emotion and memories. I also find that intentionally tapping into my sense of smell within any given environment tends to have a particularly grounding effect.

10-The Water: Its color, temperature, speed, depth, and structure. I love the huge amount of variance from one body of water to the next, along with studying the seasonal shifts that take place.⁣ Again, there’s something particularly engaging about returning to the same water features over the span of time. It offers all sorts of insight into how our climate is shifting, and how it is that we may be impacting the health of our fisheries.

I fell in love with fly fishing precisely because of its richness. It truly is a feast for the senses, a 10 course meal perfectly paired in some of the most beautiful venues the earth has to offer. Consequently, I’ve also found that the more time that I’ve spent shifting my gaze towards these many other elements, the stronger angler that I’ve become. ⁣Whether or not you have a tendency to be incredibly focused or catching fish every time you’re out on the water, or you feel fairly neutral about the catching itself, there’s always ample opportunity to enrich your experience in these ecosystems by simply seeing what’s there, and becoming actively and enthusiastically engaged with the gift that is exploring the great outdoors with a fly rod in hand. 

Enjoy.