CUTBANK Words: Zach Otte A SPOOL OF MONO These Kayapo tribesmen catch 100-pound catfish, giant payara, tiny minnows and all manner of crazy Amazonian fish with nothing more than a spool of mono, a hook and bait. Over and over I have seen them flick and chuck their offerings with a level of accuracy and dexterity that rivals angling masters. Still, Kopky with a fly nearly identical to mine will likely see little action. First, I have the bow of the boat—the fish will see my fly well before his. Second, I know how to work a streamer. Third, he doesn’t even have a rod. Kopky pinches a couple lead pellets onto the wire above his fly. To cast he twirls line over his head or at his side and lets it rip. We both throw about 45 feet— all that’s needed to hit the boulder edges and eddies where the bass sulk and plot. Kopky is a giant Kayapo warrior with bulg-ing scars running down his arms, marks from the tests of his youth when the chief dragged payara fangs through his flesh. He says he wants a fly and I hand him an orange and chartreuse deceiver. He shakes his head and hands it back. “Give one that catch fish,” he demands in broken Portuguese. I open my streamer box and tell him to choose. I instantly regret it. He grabs the last white muddler that has not been chewed up by piranhas. The one on the end of my line is falling apart and I still have a lot more water to cover after tonight. His face glows, the most fly-fascinated warrior I’ve met yet. “Don’t lose it,” I assert, trying not to seem too up-tight. “Please.” BELOW A large peacock bass from the Amazon River drainage grabs big air. On these rivers, everything from voracious piranha to 100-pound catfish to vampire-fanged payara is ready to throw down. Bring wire tippet and beefy sticks. Photo: Rafael Costa 030 THE FLYFISH JOURNAL
The Flyfish Journal Volume Eight, Issue Four: Page 30
