68 * * * * * "Oh, Ranger!" 



Why, just the "goin' " part of goin' fishin' takes that long. First there 

 is the ceremony of hauling out the old pipe (used only when the annual 

 assault on the trout is made), scraping it, knocking it on the trunk of a 

 tree, stoking it, coaxing the fire in its bowl, tasting the first few puffs 

 with meaning smacks of the lips, and then getting down to business. 



Next comes the luring of the lures out of the lining and the band of 

 the old hat, used the year before. This practice is frowned upon by the 

 more particular anglers nowadays, who hold that flies should be kept in 

 fly books. Even so, bringing them out, inspecting them and talking 

 about them, reviewing the artillery and soaking the leaders, is quite a 

 ceremony. Then there is the rod to be pieced together and strung with 

 the best line in the U.S.A., something owned by every other angler him 

 self in person. After a few flourishes of the rig as finally assembled, the 

 angler addresses himself to the waters and the fly whistles over his head 

 and out where a trout "ought to be." Sometimes he is. Wham! The 

 line is jerked taut and the match is on, a battle of wits between a 

 flashing, zigzagging, fighting trout and an excited, eager opponent on 

 shore or in the boat, the odds somewhat against the trout at that stage of 

 the game. 



Sometimes the best of charms fail, and one by one the pretty flies 

 find their way back into the hat lining or into the fly book, and at last 

 out comes the old spinner that did the work the year before, a last resort 

 which fly fishermen always seem reluctant to use. Of course, there is 

 many a lure between the Royal Coachman and the humble angleworm, 

 and though most anglers are too proud to use anything but flies at the 

 start, their pride unbends after a few hours and many are the tricks that 

 are played on the poor old trout. He is offered rubber minnows and 

 wooden frogs and bright-colored what nots until he just cannot keep 

 his appetite in curb. 



One sees some odd outfits in the parks. Travelers are always looking 

 for compact equipment. Some of it is of little use. Some of it is excel 

 lent. What to bring seems to puzzle many would-be anglers, judging by 

 the questions they ask the rangers. The experienced angler, of course, 



knows exactly what he wants, and seeks no 

 advice. But for the novice, a few suggestions 

 may not be amiss. Everyone cannot afford the 

 elaborate and costly complete outfits. The be 

 ginner at this royal sport often prefers to rent 

 fishing tackle at the stores found in all of the 

 national parks. That is economical, but it is 

 not so satisfactory for the Sagebrusher who 

 may want to stop and angle en route from 

 point to point. 



