Getting hooked on fly fishing
OHIOPYLE – Casting and bait selection make fly fishing considerably more challenging than fishing with spinning tackle. The challenge, especially understanding which of the hundreds of types of water-borne insects to imitate as bait for trout, is what makes fly fishing a “lifetime sport,” Venture Outdoors fly-fishing instructor Dale Kotowski of Greene County said to a class of beginners recently at Ohiopyle State Park.
“We’ll make it fun,” his wife and co-instructor, Cyndi Kotowski, said as a diverse group of five people, mostly from Pittsburgh, took their seats for Venture Outdoors’ introduction to fly fishing class that was held at Wilderness Voyageurs.
That’s were Dale Kotowski, a past president of the Chestnut Ridge Chapter of Trout Unlimited, spends a couple days a week working as a fly-fishing guide.
The Kotowskis have been volunteer trip leaders for the Pittsburgh-based Venture Outdoors fly-fishing classes for four years.
When they’re not on the water, Dale is a dentist in Waynesburg and Cyndi is the chief financial officer for the Washington County Redevelopment Authority.
During class time, casting practice and fishing in the Youghiogheny River, the Kotowskis teach with the patience of schoolteachers and blend it with their knowledge and love of the outdoors to make learning a complicated form of fishing a fun lesson.
The Kotowskis used the first couple hours of class time to outline the various types of insects as well as worms and bait fish that trout and other game fish feed on.
Dale said he also teaches more advanced classes that focus only on the countless number of insects that live in water until they are mature enough to rise to the surface and then fly away.
Nymphs and larvae are immature bugs that live on the bottom of a stream or river for a year or two before they become adults and rise to the surface, he said.
Different subspecies of mayfly and stonefly nymphs, as well as caddis larvae are found in waterways throughout the country. Stoneflies live three to four years as nymphs.
Caddis takes the form of a pupa during their ascent to the surface, but they fly off the instant they reach the surface.
“Trout try to catch them in the water column,” Dale Kotowski said.
During their adult lives, which last only a matter of weeks, they fly to the water to drink and, once again, risk becoming meals for trout.
Conversely, mayflies float on the surface until their wings fully deploy before flying away. They become targets for trout while waiting to fly away. As adults, mayflies live for only one day.
Wet flies, which are manmade imitations of nymphs, larvae, pupa, worms and baitfish, are fished on the bottom or in the water column.
Dry flies imitate adult insects and are fished on the surface.
Most flies are tiny and are tied to even smaller hooks. They are essentially weightless, so weighted fishing line and long skinny rods are used to cast them.
Dale advised the beginners to use weight forward line, in which the heaviest part is in the first 30 feet of the 90-foot fly line.
First, 50 to 200 yards of backing line is wound onto the reel. The fly line is tied to the fly line and 6 to 9 feet of leader and tippet is then tied to the end of the fly line. A fly can then be tied to the leader or tippet.
Fly line, leader and tippet come in different strengths. Generally, stronger material is needed when bigger fish are being targeted, but experienced fly fishers will use lighter lines in clear water conditions, Dale said.
After learning the specialized grip needed to hold the rod for a proper cast, the beginners were taught to use a back cast before casting forward. Dale said experienced fly fishers often forego the back cast.
But the back cast helps novices feel the weight of the line “load” the 8 1/2-foot rods as it flexes behind the fisherman.
After the rod loads, the line is cast forward.
The last few hours of the eight-hour class were spent in the river, where all but one member of class caught at least one fingerling trout.
However, the class provided them with enough basic information to embark on a lifetime of fishing fun.
“The sport in a lifetime activity,” Dale said. “You’ll constantly be learning.”
The Kotowskis’ lives are entwined in fly-fishing.
They spent the morning of their wedding in February fishing with their friends in Meadow Run, a Youghiogheny River tributary that also flows through Ohiopyle, and then got married in the Meadow Run Church.
“We fished all morning, dropped our waders and the pastor married us,” Dale said.
Despite being a lifelong fishing enthusiast, Dale said winning a bout with prostate cancer last year taught him to cherish the time he spends fishing and passing along his knowledge.
“It’s enjoyable to pass it along to more people. The more of that I can do the better. Get the most out of each day. We really only have today,” Dale said. “Otherwise, you’re only paying lip service about making the most out of your time.”
Dale and Cyndi are charter members of Venture Outdoors, which started out as the Western Pennsylvania Field Institute in 2002.
They became fly-fishing trip leaders the year after they took their first fly-fishing class as members of the organization. The instructor arrived late for the class and was “not well informed,” Dale said.
No one was happy about it, so Dale, an Illinois native who said he’s been fishing since he was 3 years old, and Cyndi took over as leaders.
The Kotowskis have an aptitude for teaching.
“I learned a lot about teaching from being a student,” Dale said, referring to continuing education courses he takes in dentistry. “If I wasn’t a dentist, I’d teach. Cyndi has always been a mentor. We bring our love of the sport. We try to make it simple and enjoyable. The best teachers spark or kindle passion.”
Team leaders for all of Venture Outdoors’ activities that include fly fishing, rock climbing, hiking, kayaking, canoeing and biking take outdoor leadership and wilderness first aid training.
“Our mission is to get people outdoors, have fun doing it and to make it easy for beginners,” said Venture Outdoors marketing coordinator Tricia Chicka.
The organization also offers social functions to its 2,000 members, Chicka said.
None of the five people who took the introduction to fly fishing class was Venture Outdoors members and had to pay $60 for the class. Members would have paid $50.
Most members are from the Pittsburgh area, but many of the organizations activities are held in Fayette County and the Laurel Highlands area.
Dale said some fly-fishing outings are held at streams in central Pennsylvania such as Spruce Creek, Spring Creek, Penn’s Creek and the Little Juniata River.
He said the organization is considering holding combination outings in which a group would hike, backpack or ride mountain bikes to fishing destinations.
“There’s no end to what you can do,” Dale said.