Guest speaker takes in sights on the fly
© Zane Mirfin, Wildside Column, Guest Speaker takes in sights on the fly, Nelson Mail, 16 August 2008
Destinations: A broken ankle keep Zane from pursuing Golden Trout in the high Sierras, but Aimee, on driving duty, made sure he got to the many compensatory experiences the US had to offer. Photo: Lance Severson
Aimee and I returned recently from a great trip to Southern California, mostly holiday and part business to promote our tourism fishing business, Strike Adventure. One of the great parts of the visit was being the guests of seven Californian fly fishing clubs.
Being chosen as the New Zealand speakers to address the clubs was a big honour and privilege and we got to meet many great fishing people along the way between Santa Barbara and San Diego.
Our trip had become uncertain when I broke my ankle three weeks before departure but with medical blessings we set forth, reliant on wheelchair, moonboot and crutches.
In hospital, I’d read Mark Inglis’ book Legs on Everest and I figured if a guy with no legs could climb the world’s tallest mountain, then a puny fishing guy from Nelson with a broken ankle could take on Los Angeles with crutches.
Mid-summer in Southern California is hot and sticky, and fires everywhere had made the air thick with smoke.
What struck me most since I had last spent time on the ground there 17 years ago was the traffic, the noise and the mile upon mile of concrete urban jungle.
Air pollution had improved since my last visit but the traffic was fearsome, and Aimee was a great driver who adapted well to right-hand travel and the voice of the GPS unit and as many as eight lanes of traffic flowing one way.
There were no rivers in the gullies, only freeways and rivers of cars – even then, people told us that traffic flows were one-third lower than normal due to high petrol prices.
The LA river was the only fishable fresh water near Los Angeles, home to fat carp up to 15lb (6.8kg).The great guys at a local fly shop called the Fisherman’s Spot gave me a T-shirt to take home – ‘‘Fish the LA river’’, the shirt says, ‘‘a sewer runs through it’’.
One night, we were invited to the Santa Monica house of one of our regular fishing clients, Skip, a Hollywood deal broker, and his movie star wife. Skip and a friend had caught and released 60 sharks up to 130lb (60kg) on fly the same day.
A great dinner ensued at a top restaurant, surrounded by beautiful people. The service and food was great, and I could see why when our young George Clooney look-alike waiter told me that Skip owned the restaurant.
The US economy is based on excessive consumption, particularly of energy. There is an insatiable demand for vehicle fuel, natural gas and electricity to maintain the American lifestyle in a harsh environment.
Things were tightening up fast, with TV and newspaper media talking down the economy at every chance. Unfortunately, this will have a big impact on New Zealand tourism.
One great fishing store we visited was BassPro. Apparently, when this store first opened, it blocked freeways as city fishermen flocked to it. The gear in the store had to be seen to be believed – fishing on the ground floor and hunting on the next floor. I rode around the store on an electric shopping cart, marvelling at the mounted animals, aquariums, boats and equipment.
There was even a trout stream flowing through the store, complete with large trout and shooting galleries upstairs. After five hours, Aimee dragged me out of BassPro, but I was disappointed because I hadn’t got to see everything.
The fishing clubs were great, with some clubs having 300 members, although with it being mid-summer, many anglers were away on fishing holidays in Montana and other exotic locations. Still, we had good attendances, with lots of anglers coming to see the New Zealander talk. It never ceased to amaze me about the great reputation New Zealand has in the eyes of Americans.
Fishing clubs have the same problems attracting younger anglers to the sport as in New Zealand and most anglers were in their ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. The Pasadena Casting Club was one of my favourite clubs, with an outdoor clubroom and casting pond, a very friendly crew and one of the bigger meetings.
I had hoped to hike into the high Sierras with friends in pursuit of golden trout, one of the few US trout species I hadn’t caught, but my leg put paid to that. Luckily, I got to see golden trout in a Sea World aquarium and, being in America, I was able to buy a book at a fly shop so I could read all about golden trout before my next visit.
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