Casting About

Changing colors

I like fall. Without a doubt, it’s my favorite time of year. The leaves change colors, temperatures begin their descent and candy manufacturers bolster their fourth-quarter earnings.

As a teenager, my spare moments were spent with a bow in hand on my parent’s farm in rural Missouri. I miss those days. Not because of the absence of venison in my freezer, rather the opportunity to experience nature otherwise not possible. A buck chasing a doe around the base of my tree, squirrels verbally bantering over territory or a coyote passing through on its morning run were some of my favorites. But preferences change. 

My love of fishing now consumes time I previously spent in a tree stand. The water is where my heart is. And though the landscape is different, my desire to connect with the elements remains. Thankfully, I am still afforded those encounters.

Watching an owl grab a dragonfly in midair, sea lions resting on a navigation buoy and a bald eagle hovering above me after my topwater lure caught his eye are among this year’s highlights. I even had a chance to talk a little turkey when 20 yearlings flew over Randy Howell, the Bass Edge crew and me on Logan Martin Lake.

Fall fishing has a different pace. Boat traffic seems nonexistent, perhaps a result of football and hunting season. Regardless, reservoirs and streams seem to breathe a sigh of relief. Wildlife becomes more active as tourists prepare for urban hibernation. The bass return to the shallows from the depths of their summer hideouts as the migration of baitfish, cooler water and decreasing daylight alter their actions.

My behavior is altered as well. I tend to fish more relaxed. It’s likely because I have managed to convince myself there are 25 hours on the anniversary of Daylight Savings Time. For days I play the game of telling myself it’s really an hour later. Indiana residents are bumming on this … no mind games for you. 

Anyway, back on subject. With tangents like those you’re liable to confuse me with Brigman. Things like getting fogged in early in the morning, abrupt weather changes and loud leaf blowers along the shore are expected. As a result, adjustments are made, enjoyment is high and success generally follows.

Fall seems like such a short window. I welcome the change from the hot summer to the comfort of fall, but I don’t much care for the approaching winter. In the Ozarks, personal research shows once the last leaf has fallen from the oak tree in my yard, temperatures drastically decrease and frozen precipitation is not far behind. But during the grip of winter, I have managed to catch both size and numbers of bass.

So yes Dr. Fish, I am still in need of your consultation services concerning perceptions and their role in success as an angler.

But this fall has certainly presented changes of another sort. The economy is certainly different than years past. We have elected a new commander in chief. Seasonal preferences are insignificant in comparison.

Not surprisingly, the landscape is pretty different. Many of us are remembering back to the raging economy, cheap gas and job security. I often try and quantify items based on if it is good or bad much like a seasonal preference, favorite lure or most treasured memory in nature. And as a trusted mentor once told me: “It just is. Conditions and situations come and go but you have this moment; do with it what you will.”

I think I’ll go fishing.