Knot tying. Why do anglers try to do it so quickly? So they can impress their friend/clients on the water? What, then, do they say when the fish breaks off? "Wow! That was some fish!" They very well might have had a great fish on the business end of that line, and they might have been posing for a photo with that monster if they or their guide had taken a few extra SECONDS to tie a proper knot.
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| Brownie brought to hand thanks to a well tied uni-knot |
I experienced this exact situation while fishing with a guide (who I just happened to meet on the stream) one sunny spring day. There were at least two occasions (that I had witnessed) where the guide had hooked into a nice (20"+) fish only to have that fish break off mid-fight. With the light tippets and small flies we were using that day, I would have chalked it to bad luck if I hadn't watched him tie another fly on in a matter of seconds, ready to fish again. Very impressed with the way he had handled his rig, I continued fishing only to see him break off the very next nice fish to take his offering. It just made me wonder how often this might happen out with a client, or how many fish he has lost due to poor knot quality. Especially given the fact that I landed multiple fish over 20" in the same area using very similar equipment/tackle.
I'm not saying that catching fish and tying a fly on as quick as possible are mutually exclusive events. I only want to reiterate how important a good knot is to fly fishing. If you are not happy with the knot, tie it again. If you are uncomfortable tying a particular knot, slow down. You may just be smiling with a lunker fish in your photo because of it.
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