Meteorologist, Please Help! #101

I’m not sure if you are seeing the same phenomenon where you live, and if so, how you are dealing with it, but it is really putting a crimp in my style, and I for one want to see it slow down or stop entirely.  I’m speaking about the enemy of the fisherman, yes, the wind! Now, picture a canoe on a pond with two fishermen in the canoe and the wind gusting 25-30 miles per hour. First, it is very hard to cast a line with that type of gust. Second, unless you are anchored properly, the canoe is going around and around like a top. Thirdly, and most importantly, there is a safety factor that cannot be ignored.  I remember back in the day when it would be windy, but the early morning and early evening until dark were pretty good. Unfortunately, that has not been the case so far this year. Wind has been prevalent the entire day. So, I set out to try to find what the devil was going on and what we could expect for the rest of the season. As you might think, there are a number of different reasons about it, from the lack of the dip in the jet stream to global warming. Along with that, they say that generally the jet stream dips sometime in June and the wind starts to subside a bit back to normal. Regardless of the science behind it, I know one thing  for sure, it is WINDY!

So, you ask, how do we compensate for the wind when we fish? Thanks for the question and here is my answer. Our season is short so we have to improvise as much as we can to take advantage of the time we have. Therefore, we take to the stream on rough days or we pull out the aluminum boat and motor and do a little trolling. Mindful of the fact that if the wind dies down, we are moving at light speed to the pond for a little fly fishing action. But, do not think that I don’t give it my all, no matter what the weather throws at me. And although safety is always first and foremost in my mind, I’ll do everything I can to get that fly rod out and do a little casting using the wind to my advantage. See, you can always throw a line farther when you have the wind as your friend.

I’d be interested to hear from you about how you cope with the wind.