GloryAndPower

The Glory and Power of the Outdoors
--By B. Dan Berger

Follow author B. Dan Berger as he explores the true value of the outdoor experience.

        It is dawn in West Virginia. The sun is coming up almost perfectly between the two
rock wedges of North Fork Gap, as if being released by the earth’s vice. As I stand in the
middle of the North Fork of the South Branch, I hear and feel the mildly rushing water
slushing-up against my waders, the cold water tickling my legs. These Potomac
headwaters can also be heard going over, around, and under the rocks and small
boulders, seemingly littered by time, nature and I’m sure some other powerful Being. I
heard something similar recently, maybe it was the trickle of a fountain in that cheap
Chinese restaurant in Washington, DC (I strongly recommend the Cashew Chicken with
Spicy Brown Sauce). And then there is an old Irish proverb that goes like: “Listen to the
sound of the river and you will get a trout.” That’s one fellow who has never been fly
fishing.

       As the sun slowly continues to rise, the water seems to steam like a pot of homemade
soup, the waffing vapors quickly dissipate into the foggy air. Squirrels begin their clicking
calls. A few small miniature flies flutter by, way too fast for me to recognize what the hell
they were. Dadgummit.

          I wedge my custom Beaverkill fly rod between my ever-expanding girth and my right
bicep. I reach into a secret compartment inside my waders and rip the Velcro apart,
opening the small pocket where a small treasure is hidden. At least hidden from my wife. I
pull out a fresh pouch of Levi Garrett and take a large three-finger pinch and place the
yummy leaves between my cheek and gum. Ahhhh, this is how to start the day... a
banana, two cups of coffee and a pinch of cancer-causing delight. Breakfast of
Champions. A handful of birds begin to take their seats in the stadium of trees along the
riverbank, slowly filling the valley with their occasional noisy squawks and whistles.
Waiting for the game to begin. I know for a fact that these birds are either laughing at me
or sending some warning to their trout friends swimming below. Bastards. On numerous
occasions, at this very spot I am now standing, I have seen aggressive hawks, majestic
bald eagles and a variety of colorful ducks. Couldn’t for the life of me or a billion dollars
tell you what feathered creatures are here this glorious morning. Snipe maybe?

          I begin to notice the smooth surfaces of the glistening pools of water in front of me
are dinging little delicate ripples. The pools become launching pads for a morning hatch.
Winged duns are emerging. Wahooo! I carefully tie on my matching fly and then start to
cast. As I cast, I carefully spit as neat and polite as possible as not to get the brown
tobacco juice on my arm, waders or fly rod. Hard to look cool spitting on oneself now isn’t
it? The trout and smallmouth bass begin to roll up to the surface, hitting the hatch,
gobbling up the Ephemeroptera hors d’oeuvres, like cute little old ladies at a blue-plate
special.

          During this entire opening scene of my Saturday morning, the stresses of a 70-hour
work week and all that encompasses it are gone. Disappeared. Vanished. All like a
wonderful magic trick. Poof! The power of the great outdoors is a magnificent and
cherished gift.

          In fact, not only does fly-fishing dissolve my stress, just driving INTO the mountains,
traveling along the river, seems to start the melting. And throughout my maturation
process, I have learned that it is not necessarily about the fly-fishing or the trout. As the
great literary Henry David Thoreau penned: “Many men go fishing all of their lives without
knowing that it is not fish they are after.” Though, I must admit, watching a trout rise to my
dry-fly and hooking that fish is better than an evening with a fancy dinner, fine wine and
raucous sex. Well okay, maybe not the… oh never, mind.

          Some consider being in the outdoors a form of religion. And then even more claim
that only He could bring the world such glory. As conservationist Tony Blake once
quipped: “Some go to church and think about fishing, others go fishing and think about
God.” It is my belief that much of the world’s problems could be solved with more people
exploring the power of the outdoors. Hard to shoot or kill someone while standing in a
stream with a fly rod in you hand, don’t you think? Although, I have been teased and
mocked by many trout that, at that moment in time, I wished upon them an execution.
Sorry, I digress. As a Christian, I do believe He has given us a beautiful environment to
enjoy, and more importantly, to protect. In addition, we are given the tools, which when
properly utilized, will help us be successful in life. And one of those tools is a fly rod…
bamboo, graphite… really doesn’t matter your flavor of choice.

          As I stand here in the middle of the river this cool morning, waving a stick as John
Gierach so elegantly writes about, I am grateful for the river and its incredible
surroundings. I can attest that my wife and 4-year old daughter, as well as my colleagues
and employees in the big city, are grateful for my time on the river, and its subsequent
stress relief. And I am sure my future cardiologist will be grateful too.

          Whatever your religion, grab a fly rod and experience firsthand the glory and power
of the outdoors. You’ll be glad you did.

          “In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing. We lived at the
junction of great trout rivers in western Montana, and our father was a Presbyterian
minister and a fly fisherman who tied his own flies and taught others. He told us about
Christ's disciples being fishermen, and we were to assume, as my brother and I did, that all
first-class fishermen on the Sea of Galilee were fly fishermen and that John, the favorite,
was a dry-fly fisherman.”
  -Norman Fitzroy Maclean, A River Runs Through It

          Dan Berger is a lifelong outdoorsman and avid fly-fisherman. He lives and works in
the Washington, DC area and spends his weekends at his home on the river in Cabins,
WV. For four consecutive years, Dan has been ranked as one of the most influential
lobbyists on Capitol Hill and is an adjunct professor of communication at George
Washington University. He is a graduate of Florida State University and Harvard University.