"...There is an indescribable something about a fly dressed by an expert amateur, who is a practical salmon fisherman, which the fly dressed by a non-angling professional not infrequently lacks. I have heard this peculiar quality rather neatly referred to as "soul" ... The question of the vise now arises...I do not think a vise at all necessary for salmon flies. Tying without it certainly puts you in a position of far greater independence. You can dress a fly in almost any position - sitting, standing, or even reclining. - How to Dress Salmon Flies: A Handbook for Amateurs , "
T.E Pryce-Tannatt, 1914.
The sensory feeling remains the same: Something alive has fastened itself to the end of the angler's line. A combination of anticipation, optimism, and adrenaline converges at the pointy end of the hook which elicits that unadulterated moment of glee. Whether the angler is a child fishing a red-and-white bobber in a pond, or the blue-water chaser of pelagic species, or even the traditional fly-angler quartering his casts in search of his anadromous quarry - a large percentage of fishing rests upon what happens to that j-shaped point at the end of the line.
As anglers, we can all relate to the "jerk" of a lively fish . Fishing is fun but catching is a joy to a fisher. Collectively, we share this exuberance of "catching". Yet some have increased their piscatorial challenges by adding certain accouterments to enhance their angling forays - hoping to make their sessions on and off the water more meaningful than just "catching". We see many examples of these challenges in the fly fishing culture. The traditions of this sport allow various avenues of enjoyment. From beautiful rods, to remarkable reels, to matching the hatch, and even fly-tying...a plethora of wonderful distractions that bring color to this endeavor.
A "distraction" that I have been blessed and cursed with encompasses the artful world of tying full-dress Atlantic Salmon flies without the aid of a vise; of course, I must fish said flies for sea-run steelhead. A lot in that statement I admit, but once a bloke like me finds that he can tie an acceptable fishing fly in his hand, the 'slippery slope' suggests that I would enhance the experience by tying as close to the celebrated Victorian-era fly patterns of the late 1800s, and applying the flies to the river.