FLY-FISHING m FLORIDA. 



BY 



DR. J. C. KEN WORTHY. 



The votaries of the rod and reel have overlooked an 

 important field for sport, for, in my opinion, no por^ 

 tion of the United States offers snch advantages for 

 fly-fishing as portions of Florida during the winter 

 months. The health of the State is beyond cavil or 

 dispute ; the climate is all the most fastidious can ask ; 

 there is an almost total absence of insect pests, and last 

 though not least, a greater variety of fish that will take 

 the fly than in any other section of the Union. My 

 own experience is mainly based on opportunities for 

 observation on the south-west coast, and it is possible 

 that points on the eastern coast, as the Indian River 

 inlet and the outlet of Lake Worth, may offer advan- 

 tages over the section referred to. 



As far as my knowledge extends, fly-fishers are in- 

 debted to my friend, Geo. C. Johnson, of Bridgeport, 

 Conn., for the development of fly-fishing in Florida. 

 Some years since I met Mr. Johnson on his arrival in this 

 city en route to Homosassa. He remarked that he had 

 brought his fly-rod with him, and I suggested that a 

 heavy bass rod would prove more serviceable. 



