{"id":6597,"date":"2019-08-27T05:02:22","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T05:02:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cforbesinc.com\/?p=6597"},"modified":"2026-02-11T19:53:01","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T19:53:01","slug":"appeal-of-fly-fishing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cforbesinc.com\/?p=6597","title":{"rendered":"The Special Appeal of Fly Fishing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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National Park Service Photo \/ Neal Herbert<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

(This program has expired)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Claudius Aelianus was a writer in ancient Rome, probably best known for his 17-book series, On the Nature of Animals<\/em>, one of our earliest comprehensive studies of the animal kingdom. What is lesser known about him, however, is that he\u2019s one of the first people to bring wide attention to what was then the relatively new sport of fly fishing. He wrote this back in the second century, describing what some locals were up to along the Astraeus River in Turkey:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey have planned a snare for the fish, and get the better of them by their fisherman’s craft. . .They fasten red wool round a hook, and fit on to the wool two feathers which grow under a cock’s wattles. Their rod is six feet long, and their line is the same length. Then they throw their snare, and the fish, attracted and maddened by the color, comes straight at it, thinking from the pretty sight to gain a dainty mouthful; when, however, it opens its jaws, it is caught by the hook, and enjoys a bitter repast, a captive.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

American fish began suffering similar fates after the sport was introduced by Europeans here in the late 1800s, which happened to be about the time the brown trout was also introduced to U.S. waters. Fishermen here were credited with being the first to use artificial lures to catch bass and, after discovering how effective they were, began to copy the patterns to make flies to catch trout and salmon. Fly fishing\u2019s growth was slow but steady, becoming widely popular in the 1920s and growing to a booming sport by the 1950s. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, thousands know the unmatched feeling of being in an isolated and beautiful place, surrounded by the beauty of creation, and preparing to do battle with some amazing local trout, salmon or whatever may be swimming by. It\u2019s a special kind of rejuvenation and an environment most never experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At C. Forbes, we celebrate the beauty and adventure fly-fishers love so much at our partner website AmericasFavoriteFlies.com, a specialty apparel and accessories brand for those who really \u201cget\u201d the sport. We\u2019re with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n