FFing With Your Hood Up And Hat On (When It’s Not Raining)

[Swattie87]

Can someone explain this to me?

I get it if it’s raining or snowing or whatever, but otherwise doesn’t it cut down your peripheral vision? It does mine, and I can’t wait for it to stop raining to take the hood down usually.

Does it just look cool? If so, then I guess I’ll start doing it. Never know when April Vokey may be around the next bend on the river.

 

[flyguyfishing]

Rain and precipitation yes. Also, late spring through summer I might have a hood on. It is to keep those little gnats from ears and neck. I don’t know how wild animals can tolerate gnats/flies flying around their heads all the time!

 

[mt_flyfisher]

After spending years years upon years in the Florida and Montana sun without proper protection from the sun I now make regular visits to the dermatologist. I don’t care how hoodies and sun gloves look…

because they look a heck of a lot better than the scars that are left behind from removing skin Cancers.

Note: the above picture was copied from an article on backcountry fishing in Yellowstone National Park previously posted here.

Added on edit: The shade from a hoodie will actually keep you cooler than having the sun hit directly on your exposed skin. And, it provides added protection to your skin that you might have missed when you put on sun screen, or when your sun screen has worn off over time.

 

[Bamboozle]

There is a small tube of sunscreen in every fishing set-up I have and I've been using a facial moisturizer with sunscreen for decades because I'm fair skinned and burn on a forecast of a sunny day.

No issues so no hoodie of gloves required but I NEVER wear shorts for the same reason.

Word of warning though to those that use sunscreen, I can't attest to fly line issues but sunscreen softened the plastic on one of my casting reel handles.

 

[Mike]

When fishing urban streams among gang-bangers you have your keep your hood up to fit in.

 

[hooker-of-men]

Kinda like how it's actually impossible to catch saltwater fish unless you're dressed like an astronaut on a spacewalk. It's just science. Look it up.

 

[mszoke1802]

I always have a baseball hat on and if I’m wearing a hoodie I’ll probably have it on. Out of habit or comfort it’s just my thing.

 

[rrt]

I echo post 3. My dermatologist has made and will continue to make lots of money because of my youthful foolishness. (Pulling the hood up doesn't look cool though! But, neither do we look cool wandering around in chest waders. I think it was Gierach who noted how silly we look.)

Anyhow, young guys, protect yourselves. You won't always be young guys.

 

[Bamboozle]

Another thing I always wear fishing (as a tribute to Art Lee) is a bandanna around my neck.

It's sort of an old geezer's Buff... 😉

It keeps the sun off my neck, comes in handy for other reasons and if I want to hold up a stagecoach, I'm set...

 

[poopdeck]

I’m not into hoodies or baseball hats for sun, rain, or bug protection. I wear a hat with the biggest dumbest looking 360 brim I can find. I enjoy the shade and airflow of a big floppy brimmed hat. I’m sure the ball cap and hoody crowd are laughing at me but I can’t prove it.

 

[lycoflyfisher]

I echo mtflyfishers comment. I have experienced sun issues here in pa boating, but not so much fishing. Fishing out west on sunny days is a completely different situation. I only fished 8 days, kept a sun hoody up or popped a collar on a fishing shirt. No gloves and my hands had blisters as well as my lips by end of week.

This is a non issue fishing most of the wild trout streams in pa.

 

[TimMurphy]

After spending years years upon years in the Florida and Montana sun without proper protection from the sun I now make regular visits to the dermatologist. I don’t care how hoodies and sun gloves look…

View attachment 1641233874

because they look a heck of a lot better than the scars that are left behind from removing skin Cancers.

Note: the above picture was copied from an article on backcountry fishing in Yellowstone National Park previously posted here.

Added on edit: The shade from a hoodie will actually keep you cooler than having the sun hit directly on your exposed skin. And, it provides added protection to your skin that you might have missed when you put on sun screen, or when your sun screen has worn off over time.

Dear mt_flyfisher,

With one brother living in Colorado and another living in North Dakota I've seen how they dress for a day on the water. I've recently taken to wearing Columbia lightweight hoodies during the summer. I'm talking the sheer PFG fishing hoodies. They are very lightweight, quick drying, and I have no problem wearing one over a baseball cap if I don't have a floppy hat with me.

For years I suffered with sunburn and farmer tans. Thankfully, those days are gone. I still haven't grown into wearing a buff though. I dip snuff and I know I'd get tired of pulling it down to spit. 😉

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[jifigz]

I wear the bare minimum pretty much always. I generally dislike hats, hoods, etc unless required by the weather. The only time I really wear hats of any kind is a beanie in the winter.

Maybe some of your recall the story of the time I took a youngster out bass fishing. He was covered head to toe like he was some hotshot out of a fly fishing magazine. He couldn't even cast.

 

[Roofin' Trouter]

Hats and hoodies also help keep the ticks from getting to my skin. The hat brim is a good place to apply bug spray to keep the black fly swatting to a minimum.

 

[caddisflyer]

Can someone explain this to me?

I get it if it’s raining or snowing or whatever, but otherwise doesn’t it cut down your peripheral vision? It does mine, and I can’t wait for it to stop raining to take the hood down usually.

Does it just look cool? If so, then I guess I’ll start doing it. Never know when April Vokey may be around the next bend on the river.

Im bald on top so I always wear my baseball type Orvis hat, which also has a fly patch and my magnifiers attached. Also the brim seems to shield my eyes from glare. I got a Simms wide brim hat that covers my ears and neck that I really like so may be switching over to that in future. I never liked hoods except in rain. I can see why people cover up though as the sun definitely takes its toll on skin after many years exposure. But my number one reason for wearing all my gear is to look cool and fit in with fly fishing high fashion.

 

[Swattie87]

🙄

I still think you guys are doing it to just look cool.

 

[riverwhy]

It doesn't look fun to be fishing bogged down like the dude in the picture. I would avoid fishing middle of the day before I would do that. As Swattie said the loss of peripheral vision would be annoying. How would I see a bear stalking me or fish rising. I dislike wearing a hood walking my dog.

 

[Nymph-wristed]

Can someone explain this to me?

I get it if it’s raining or snowing or whatever, but otherwise doesn’t it cut down your peripheral vision? It does mine, and I can’t wait for it to stop raining to take the hood down usually.

Does it just look cool? If so, then I guess I’ll start doing it. Never know when April Vokey may be around the next bend on the river.

Yes it looks cool.

And... For me, it's because I had mohs procedure on my neck and and lip (so far) to remove basal cell carcinoma, so don't judge me until you turn 50....

A fishing life is hard on the skin and maybe these young hipsters are just more aware of that than I was. I spent so many days on the beaches and bays with nary a sunscreen as a youth, and then I landscaped my way through college, and fished a A LOT...

I am frankly glad for the hoodies because those wide brim hats are not for me.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

🙄

I still think you guys are doing it to just look cool.

Totally man. I was just going to say, all the valid reasons in the world can't undo the fact that it's definitely common amongst the younger fly fishing bros.

 

[wildtrout2]

Totally man. I was just going to say, all the valid reasons in the world can't undo the fact that it's definitely common amongst the younger fly fishing bros.

Gangsta fishermen.