Winter Fly- Fishing in Nova Scotia 



to forestall the criticism I am sure will be made by the 

 light-tackle " sports " upon reading the above summary 

 of the heavy tackle used by the local winter salmon 

 fishermen. 



When the water is open enough, canoes or punts are 

 launched from the edge of the ice, and being equipped 

 with a kellick, or anchor, the fishing may be done from 

 midstream. To those who are not familiar with the art 

 of anchoring a canoe or boat in swift-running water, 

 a word of caution may not be out of place. Always 

 keep the bow or light end of the craft upstream. The 

 anchor rope should pass through a pulley on the bow 

 or a hole through the stem of the craft. A handy cleat 

 may be fastened on the after thwart. With this rig 

 it is not necessary to go forward (with the consequent 

 danger involved in swift water) to pull up the anchor. 

 The fisherman can manipulate the anchor rope standing 

 or kneeling near the stern. A pole is in more general 

 use as a propelling agent in the Medway River than 

 either oars or paddles, as the stream is very swift and 

 rocky. 



Most of the casting is done within a radius of seventy- 

 five feet of the boat. A single large fly is used as de- 

 scribed above. This fly is allowed to sink from a foot 

 to two feet below the surface of the water, and is trailed 

 gently back and forth through the eddies and holes. 

 Where in the summer-time Nova Scotia salmon are 

 apt to seek pools and eddies in comparatively shallow 

 but very swift water, and perform continuous aviation 

 stunts after striking, in the winter they delight in " aqua- 

 ation " manoeuvres, but seldom come out of the water. 



One salmon nose-dived when he struck the fly, side- 

 slipped, tail-dived, and looped- the -loop all under 

 water. If he hadn't run out of petrol he'd be fighting 

 yet. I gave the powerful rod all the strain it would 



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