SECRETS OF THE SALMON 



pool where the current strikes a ledge at about 

 forty-five degrees angle. The salmon were lying 

 along the ledge close to shore and his boat was 

 anchored about sixty feet out in the pool. The 

 fly was cast toward the shore and swung outward. 

 A salmon came short for the fly six or eight times. 

 I happened to be watching from the bank and 

 noticed the light and thought that at the point 

 where the salmon reached the fly it must be in 

 shadow. My friend was about to give it up when 

 I called to him to move the boat inshore and cast 

 close to the ledge and pull directly up-stream. In 

 this way the fly would be well lit. He did so and 

 hooked the salmon on the second cast. This 

 seemed a plain case of fly illumination. 



When the dry fly is floating high on the surface 

 the fish can see only that part of the fly which 

 punctures the surface if the fly is outside his win- 

 dow. This generally means the hook or the points 

 of the hackles. Each one of these breaks the sur- 

 face and makes a miniature lens which catches the 

 light. The fish sees these light spots a long way 

 off. As the fly passes into the window it becomes 

 visible above the surface and, as it is flattened in 

 appearance, the higher it sets up the larger it ap- 

 pears. If the dry fly is moved or strikes the water 



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