The wisdom of the salmon

In the Gaelic calendar the month of May was celebrated as the beginning of summer and Gaelic Nova Scotia Month was launched this week with events planned to celebrate Gaelic culture across Nova Scotia during May. The theme of this year’s events is Ar Sgeul ri Innse, or Our Story to Tell.

As I write this column I have a small Gaelic Nova Scotia flag on my desk. The flag consists of a leaping salmon on a blue background. It was declared the symbol for Gaelic culture in Nova Scotia back in 2008 by the Gaelic Council of Nova Scotia together with the Nova Scotia Office of Gaelic Affairs. The salmon plays an important role in Celtic culture where it symbolized the source of wisdom and knowledge. I keep the flag on my desk in the hope that some of that wisdom, and knowledge, rubs off on me.

Most anglers will agree that luck certainly plays a role in fishing success, being at the right place at the right time comes to mind. But I believe that, most of the time, fishing success is a combination of luck combined with skill, preparation and knowledge.

When I was a young fellow I was an avid reader of outdoor magazines like Field and Stream, Outdoor Life and Sports Afield. Two of my favourite outdoor writers were Joe Brooks and Ted Trueblood. I can still remember reading a story by Ted Trueblood about a salmon fishing trip he made to Newfoundland. In the story he related his disappointment when, on his first salmon fishing trip, he wasn’t catching any fish. After several fishless days one of his guides took him to one side and said, “Ye must have faith, and courage, to catch a salmon.” Trueblood took his advice to heart, began fishing with renewed confidence and caught fish.

I was reminded of this story a few years ago when I was salmon fishing in Quebec. Four of us fished in the cold, wind and rain for four days without getting a single tug. However, we kept at it. What role does confidence play in catching fish? I believe the confident angler is a successful angler.

Confidence in your fishing comes from the knowledge that you have the right equipment and gear whether it is a fly, lure or bait. Confidence also comes with experience. This can only come from time spent on the water. I remember when I first started salmon fishing I spent half my time changing flies because I was convinced I had the wrong pattern on and the other half jumping from pool to pool on the river because I believed there were no salmon where I was fishing. Now, many years later I have much more confidence that the fly I choose can catch a salmon and that the pool I fish probably has some fish in it.

If you present your lure, bait or fly to the fish in a lifelike manner then you will catch fish. Fly fishing is one area that has built up a mystique of matching the hatch, presenting flies that are as close to the natural insect as possible. While this can be a great method of fishing I find that a trout will turn down a fly if it is the right size and looks like something good to eat. Many people believe that fly fishing is a difficult sport when, in actual fact, fly fishing can be a very simple and easily mastered way of adding to your angling enjoyment.

Maintaining faith in your equipment, combined with wisdom and knowledge collected from time on the water, will help you catch fish. The majority of today’s equipment is very good and, while it is nice to have top-end equipment, it will not necessarily make you a better angler or help you catch more fish. Your best tools are the experience gained from fishing and observation.

So the next time you go fishing, do so with renewed faith and courage. May the wisdom of the salmon go with you.