Creek Speak April 2017 | Page 19

Mr. Kloster, Fishing Devotee

For most students at Silver Creek High, when they think of chemistry they think of a class that takes a lot of patience, studying, and work to get through. For some, they are reminded of their teacher, Mr. Kloster. Since Chemistry is a subject that takes a immense amount of time and patience to master, it’s no surprise that Kloster’s hobby would be something as time consuming and high skill focus as fly-fishing.

Mr. Kloster’s passion for fly-fishing began when he moved to Colorado in the late 80’s; he had previously lived in Texas which had little to no flying fishing spots or people who were interested in it. When he took up fly-fishing, he was drawn to it because of all the factors that are involved with it and the high amount of skill it takes to get good at the sport. Similarly to how in Chemistry you have to be very exact with your measurements and the way that you work out procedures, in fly-fishing you have to be very exact with finding the correct fly, depth and drift, as well as using the proper bait and pole for the type of fish that you are trying to catch.

He says he prefers the solitude of the sport, which is why if he could pick out a ideal place to fish he says he would pick somewhere with, “Lots of fish; few people.” Due to this he says that he hasn’t often participated in the fly-fishing competitions, he says he prefers to use the sport to relax and enjoy nature and the solitude. He says he really got a spark in the sport when he started to get a hang of casting and started catching more fish. He says the pay off and the experience makes the hobby for him and the reward of catching something is worth while.

olitude. He says he really got a spark in the sport when he started to get a hang of casting and started catching more fish. He says the pay off and the experience makes the hobby for him and the reward of catching something is worth while. When we asked him about his most memorable fishing experience, he responded with, “Had a trout on once at the Yampa River in Steamboat and a northern pike darted out, snatched my fish, and cut my line. That was memorable.” We also asked him if he had ever been injured while fly-fishing, he shared, “I was fishing on the Green River in Utah once and my brother-in-law hooked me with a large fly. After trying for about 20 minutes to remove the hook, I gave up and kept fishing. Later, after trying for 45 minutes to remove it with a pair of pliers, I went to the hospital to have it removed.”