It’s your final fly-fishing day of the season. Here’s how to make it memorable

The calendar doesn’t lie, though fly anglers often spend autumn pretending it does. Thanksgiving comes and goes, and holiday obligations start appearing like mayflies on a warm evening. It’s that bittersweet time when your fishing window narrows to a sliver, and all you want is just one more solid outing before hanging up your gear for the season.

Then the forecast you hoped for appears: partly sunny, highs in the low teens, light winds. It’s the last good fly-fishing day of the year—one final chance to pack a whole season’s worth of missed opportunities into just a few hours. But when a day matters that much, the pressure can crush it before it even begins. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in 40 years of fly fishing, it’s the harder you push, the faster the whole experience starts to unravel. These days, I aspire to a different approach, and it begins long before I pull on my thermal wading pants…

PACK STRATEGICALLY

In my neighbourhood, trout season closes in September, so by late fall, I’m usually targeting smallmouth bass. In summer, I fish bass with literally a dozen flies. But on that final outing, it’s easy to get lost in “what if” scenarios. What if they’re still hitting surface flies, but also crushing crayfish patterns? What if the deep pools are productive, but the shallows flats are better? This way madness lies. You end up staring at perfectly good water while trying to decide between a brown and a rusty-brown Clouser.

Instead, pack thoughtfully, but not frantically. Rig a couple of rods, if you must, but leave the back-ups in the car until they’re actually needed. Remember, fall fish are often feeding heavily to survive the winter, and they aren’t too fussy. Plan for the most likely conditions—not every possible scenario. A single, well-organized box often outperforms three hastily packed ones, especially at this time of year. It also keeps your attention on fishing instead of juggling gear.