I am standing in line with veins in my teeth. There are thousands of chum and I am going to catch my share. With my Polaroid shades I am noticing there is a big shifting blackness 10 feet off the rod tip of the person downstream.
When his line moves off, I land my fly in front of him and poach the fish that snaps the fly. Then I am risking my fingers with inch-long teeth, 20 pound chum thrashing at my waist. His line, on the other hand, reveals the rhythmically pumping tip motion of a tail-hooked salmon and he is into his backing. Ten minutes later the see-saw battle ends with the fish pulled in tail first and let go.
In the sunlight, his fly looks like two peanuts in their shell. Then I am realizing the fly is heavier than that, as he struggles to cast back and cast forward, clunk-clunk, clunk-clunk. Very pretty red fly line, but a cast of no more than seven metres.
"You might want to try a lighter fly," I opine politely. Shortly thereafter, we are looking down at his fly. It is roughly the same as a yellow hootchy with a weight in its head.
"Ah," I try, diplomatically, "the problem is hinging." To his uncomprehending face, I point out that when there is a section of lighter density line between a fly line and a heavier fly, no power is transmitted to the fly. And the 'leader' is 35-pound test at least. So, I add some 20-pound, showing how to attach looped figure-eight-knotted leaders, choose an actual fly from his tackle box - not a fly box - that is full of spoons and spinners and Kwik-fish.
Shortly he is casting 10 metres and exclaiming how much easier it is. In the afternoon, his son drives down and gets out his fly rod, and is introduced to the concept of fishing with an actual fly. Not convinced, and having bought a number of size 14 Kwik-fish, he is soon casting a four-inch, bright orange 'fly'. The older chappy goes back to another 'fly' and their short stuttering casts plop in front of them.
By now the "Elder Spirit" dugout boat loaded with members of the Sooke First Nation is casting out 10-inch spoons on spinning rods. When someone points out this is a fly-fishing only section of the Sooke, the bright reply is, "Yes, I know." Soon fish are being dragged this way and that by the fly people using lures and their aboriginal brethren doing the same - but legally.
Later, satisfied with landing and releasing a dozen in the mouth, it occurs to me that what the 'fly' fishers have been doing is against the law. The definition of fly fishing in the provincial regs is: angling with a line to which only an artificial fly is attached (floats, sinkers, or attracting devices may not be attached to the line when the fishing is restricted to "fly fishing" only).
