Sun, Sun, Sun, here it comes.
Unfortunately, I’m not referring to the Beatles song. Here in the Valley Of The Sun, the lyric is a warning. A foreboding of the inevitable. Most people embrace the coming of summer, and the joy of being on the water fishing. Not for me in Arizona. The forecast almost always includes temperatures that are in triple digits before noon. Many a day there’s an excessive heat warning and advice to refrain from outdoor activities. The summer heat is a challenge to fishing. So how to get out and fish?
For some, the answer is to avoid the blazing sun altogether and fish at night. The option of becoming a fish chasing vampire is not available to me on a regular basis. So, the key is sun protection. I never really enjoyed slathering sun block over exposed areas of skin. For others in the Fly Fishing Dojo, the effects of chemotherapy mean that the idea of putting the harsh chemicals in sun block on is not even an option. The alternative is simple, sun protection clothing; including face masks, shirts, pants and gloves.
So, as often as possible (usually 4 days a week) we don our uv clothing, pack copious amounts of water, our home-made organic energy snacks and hit the water.
On days when the high temperature is expected to exceed 105 degrees, I also pack a water soaked hydration vest into a cooler. In a heat related emergency, the vest can put put on to immediately begin to lower body temperature.
The results of being able to fish under the drastic sun conditions pay-off. Here’s a video of a huge catfish caught on a fly one hot summer morning when the temperatures were already one hundred degrees by eleven o’clock.
In the photo and video both Di and I are wearing an uv protection shirt we purchased from Wicked Catch gear. You can visit their website at http://www.wickedcatchgear.com/fishing-shirts/
use promo code: WCProstaff-JSzmitkowski at checkout for a 5 % discount (not applicable to shipping costs and taxes).
As a Thank-you for reading, I have listed a two-pack of FlyFishing Dojo on E-bay for only $ 1.00 which includes mailing. To get your FFD sticker two-pack, simply go to e-bay and search “Fishing stickers-FlyFishing Dojo Logo blog” – do not bid more than the $1.00, I’ll keep listing while supplies last.
In closing, I remain,
Sensei John
Look for updates on my pending book, Fishing Dojo, coming by the Fall of 2014.
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