8 Fly-Fishing’s Legacy for Conservation
God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation than angling.
—Izaak Walton (1808)
Learning Objectives
- Examine the history of fly-fishing and early influencers on conservation on cold-water fishes, with emphasis on the Rocky Mountain west.
- Identify the four past eras of fly-fishing and describe their unique characteristics, and analyze change in fly-fishing over time.
- Recognize fly-fishing as a specialized fishing endeavor that led to early development of an angling code of ethics.
- Evaluate the historical significance of fly-fishing and cold-water conservation organizations in the development of conservation programs.
- Identify issues and conflicts of stocking nonnative trout and preserving wild trout.
- Understand future challenges for preserving cold-water fish in response to global change.
9.1 Introduction
Imagine the frustration of being surrounded by fish and casting to them, only to have them ignore or be spooked by all your offerings. Anglers learned long ago to imitate the same food that fish were eating and place the imitation fly without spooking the fish. While fishing can use a wide range of gears and baits, fly-fishing refers specifically to the sport of fishing using a long rod and an artificial fly. This form of fishing has been around for at least 1,800 years, based on writings from Eastern Europe, and may have been practiced earlier (Hoffman 2016). Fly-fishing initially focused on trout and salmon, but now it is widely used to catch other fresh- and saltwater fish.
Fly fishers targeting trout had an important influence in developing and sustaining conservation programs, although they were sometimes criticized for exclusive or single-interest advocacy. Here I review the history of trout fishing and fly-fishing with special focus on the Rocky Mountain West, where fly fishers first exerted their influence on conservation ethics and sportfishing policy. Although many individuals and organizations played roles, I concentrate on only two: Fly Fishers International (FFI) and Trout Unlimited (TU). These two organizations had similar interests in conservation, but important differences prevented them from working together on a unified goal of conservation. The legacy of fly-fishing demonstrates the importance of passion, persistence, and partnerships in fish conservation.
Trout and salmon are the only sport fish native to the Western states, and fly-fishing here became more than a leisure activity. Norman Maclean’s novel, A River Runs through It (1976), begins, “In our family there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing.” Later Maclean writes that “Something within fishermen[1] tries to make fishing into a world perfect and apart.” The iconography of Western fly-fishing that Maclean and others wrote about was created by anglers, fisheries managers, tourists, guides, businesses, and region promoters. The history of Rocky Mountain fly-fishing parallels the history of th