Fly fishing isn’t always that solo, lonesome adventure that many believe it to be. Don’t misunderstand—sometimes, it’s ideal to be wonderfully alone along a mountain stream or a Caribbean flat, casting to fish and letting your mind just wander away from the thoughts that occupy it on a daily basis.
But sometimes, fishing is better with friends. The video below about a handful of buddies from all over world convening on the French Caribbean island of Guadaloupe reminded me that fishing—particularly frustrating fishing—can be a lot more fun when you folks you like around you to help salve the wounds that come with angling failure.
I’ve been on some pretty lousy fishing trips that were made much better by the good friends were there with me to remind me that it isn’t, indeed, always about the fishing. Sometimes, “fishing” means finding the best fish taco in Los Barilles, or chasing down the perfect beach bar overlooking the Laguna Madre after being blow off the water by a spring gale. Or enjoying a ribeye on a kitschy Montana restaurant after getting schooled on a big, western river.
A bad day on the water can be made better by a good afternoon or evening engaged in conversation with buddies. Remember that the next time you get skunked.
— Chris Hunt