It's an odd fact of life that whichever side of the stream you're on, two-thirds of the best water is out of reach on the other side.
John GierachAccurately recalling an entire day of fishing is like trying to push smoke back down a chimney, so you settle on these specific moments.
John GierachI like to do every operation the same way on each fly. In the course of tying a batch of flies, I might get an idea on how to do something differently, but try to save it to try out later rather than break my comfortable rhythm. I don't worry about forgetting it. In my experience good ideas stay with you, while bad ones go back to where they came from, and good riddance.
John GierachThe best fisherman I know try not to make the same mistakes over and over again; instead they strive to make new and interesting mistakes and to remember what they learned from them.
John Gierach