Fly fishing is pretty odd, isn’t it? We use feathers, fur, and metal to try to dupe fish. Casting isn’t easy, particularly in the wind. We make things hard.

But when it all comes together, it’s a thrill.

I write about this because of a recent Tom Rosenbauer podcast on “Don’t Play the Fly-Fishing Game by Someone Else’s Rules” (here). In short, Tom interviews a fellow angler who is also a philosophy professor. This person talks about how games are fun because we create rules that make them challenging. And we as anglers can create our own rules and ignore others’, provided that they’re fishing legally.

I’ve written in the past about my own fishing quirks. I try to throw only flies that I’ve made. One winter, I threw only big, articulated streamers to try to improve my casting and to target “that one good fish.” Others also make their own rules of the game. Angler Ed Engle one season fished only one fly pattern. Many anglers do not nymph at all. Some love tightlining and others avoid it. The list goes on.

I found the interview quite interesting and, frankly, quite liberating. I can make my own rules as to how I fish that day. And I can ignore what other people are doing.

What are you fly-fishing rules of your game?