On many a day on the Truckee River in Reno, fly fishing is a commonly seen sight. The sun glinting off the ripples of the cool alpine water. The fisherman standing in waist-high water, waiting patiently for a bite.
For Patrick Sheehan, marketing director for Dickson Commercial Group and an avid fly fisherman, it’s the challenge, the solitude and the peace that keeps him coming back.
“I just love the meditative piece of it,” Sheehan said. “They call it the flow state. When you’re fishing, all the chatter that you’re usually thinking kind of can disappear because you’re so focused on what you’re doing.”
Many others are joining Sheehan and finding the joy in fly fishing. The Nevada Department of Wildlife has seen an uptick in people buying fishing licenses this year, and in response, wildlife officials have been stocking area streams, ponds, and lakes.
Reno fly fishing: Recreation in the heart of town
At Reno Fly Shop in downtown Reno, owner Jim Litchfield said many beginners are surprised to learn that fly fishing is available in the high desert.
“Then, they almost have too many opportunities to begin to distill it down and assess,” he said. “It’s paralysis by analysis. There’s so much opportunity. There’s lake fishing, river fishing, stream fishing, and high Alpine lakes that you can hike to once the summer really hits, and the snowmelt occurs.”
The Truckee River, which originates in Lake Tahoe and terminates in Pyramid Lake, is a beautiful resource, he said.
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“You have the opportunity to fish for native Lake Tahoe cutthroat trout, as well wild rainbows and wild brown trout,” he said.
But it’s not the only place for Reno fly fishing that he recommends. When it’s open to the public, Pyramid Lake is a fly-fishing world destination, he said.
“They travel in from all over to catch the ginormous long cutthroat trout,” he said. “In a certain time of year, fly fishing, for our approach, actually out-fishes conventional tackle.
While starting to fly fish may seem overwhelming to a beginner, Litchfield recommends that they embrace the serenity of the sport, as Sheehan has.
“If people get out of the concept that fly fishing has to result in a picture of a big trout in their hands, and instead think of it as an opportunity to for time out in nature, it’s a great way to go,” he said.
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It’s also a sport that’s well suited to social distancing, he added.
“It is a relatively singular pursuit that you can do alone or with a small group of people successfully and still enjoy it with social limitations,” he said.
For beginners, he recommends seeking out many locally-available resources, including those in his store. Reno Fly Shop offers a weekly podcast, classes, and clinics and a fishing report to help anglers of all levels.
“We’re a locally owned business with a really passionate group of dedicated staff with a very deep understanding and appreciation and consideration of the watershed and the fish that we chase,” he said.
The shop also offers rentals and guided Reno fly fishing excursions.
For his part, Sheehan is enjoying the journey, and the challenge of Reno fly fishing.
“It’s this really cool challenge when it all comes together,” he said. “It’s a really fulfilling, accomplishing feeling when it all works out.”
