22nd July 2014 Fly fishing and design? It’s not as unconnected as one might imagine. Shane Baum at Leisure Society reflects on his love of fly fishing for Eyestylist.
“I grew up fishing with my pops, grandpa, aunts and uncles. Some of my fondest memories are being a child with a fishing rod in hand, casting and reeling. At some point, I grew a little bored with it all and sat idle for a decade or two, other than open ocean fishing on surf trips. Fast forward to my introduction to fly fishing. The movement of it all seemed so elegant and refined. Something you could only acquire through years of experience. My first cast was pathetically awkward. The entire prospect of it seemed impossible, but over time the technique revealed itself. Then I went to my first fly shop. I asked the gentleman at the counter how many flys they stocked. He said “about thirteen hundred…”

“I thought about that for a second and asked, ‘how do you know which ones to use’? He replied: “Well, it depends on the hatch. Which bugs are hatching and at what state. It depends on the water temperature, the air temperature, the water depth, the water clarity, the flow rate, the time of day, the barometric pressure, whether the fish are spawning or not. It depends on whether it’s sunny or cloudy or windy, raining……” he went on. I thought about it and said ‘this is for me.’ It’s the opposite of tic tac toe. A game you can pursue for the rest of your life and never master. It’s not unlike design – you never really master design. You just learn as you go and keep trying, come what may…”
Top photo: Shane wears Trotter sunglasses in black from The Leisure Society Collection