Most of the best fly fishermen I know started off on traditional tackle, and many still look to their old gear for inspiration when putting together a solution to a fishy problem.

Flies tied to look and act like lures, custom rigs, and purpose-built leaders are commonplace in a fly fishing culture that is steadily moving away from its tweed-clad roots. One of my favorite nuggets of wisdom adapted from outside of the fly fishing world is the drop shot rig.

He dreamed of concrete and asphalt, Plexiglas and steel, and a single blade of grass that he saw from afar. His city dream, for that’s what it was, a reflection of his hard-earned urban persona, was peopled with friends and acquaintances and colleagues; some of whom he’d known for years and others who he’d only just met. A certain few were indistinct, wrapped in shadows that defied the streetlights, but he recognized them nonetheless, as if they were his brothers or his lovers, even his parents.