There’s Nothing Like an Old Hand

By Jamie Moore, Senior, Natural Resources Management
Reflections on his internship experience this summer in Illinois

I’m a pretty good fly fisherman.  I’ve heard some fishermen say that I’m a very good fly fisherman for my age and years of experience.  My arm is pretty good, and I can cast really far.  But when I see Darwin Adams, I come back to earth quickly.

Darwin is the most able fly fisherman I know personally.  I got to see him in action again because he and I taught a workshop this week for elementary school summer campers in Highland Park.  He was extremely patient with the kids, who were ages 9-11, and they loved watching him whip the line back and forth. I have to admit that I was entertained myself. I guess there’s nothing like an old hand.

I learned something just from watching him. It will take the kids awhile to get the hang of casting because it’s so much harder than it looks, but I was glad to see that a few of them were genuinely interested.  When it was my turn to teach, I spoke to the kids about my first experiences fly fishing when I was 11 years old.

I was lucky because my dad took me fishing on the Pecos River in New Mexico. He is my best fishing partner, and he taught me everything he knows about fly fishing.  At 67, he’s still a more accurate caster than I am, but he cannot cast nearly as far as I do.  Still, fly fishing has been a hobby that always brings us together, and some of the best times of my life have been when I have been fishing with my dad.

I’m really hoping that some of the kids I spoke to at camp will feel the same interest that I did and find that fly fishing brings  them to a love for nature and the beauty of the river and fish.

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